Buried Secrets
by ChaosGirl607
Summary: Aftermath of Secrets, in which of all of Artemis's are uncovered by none other than Red Arrow. "and...besides, I trust you." " You don't understand...it's my fault." "Then make me." "That's for touching them...when I warned you not to." "You ARE a brave little fighter." "I'll find you...no matter what it takes." AU.
1. Prologue

**Hey, there! This is my first Young Justice fiction, but don't think that I'm new to it. I've been watching it ever since it came out last Thanksgiving. The episode **_**Secrets**_** inspired me to write this. I'm pretty much drabbling here, and I may not be portraying them right. **

**I only ask for constructive criticism. Bashing me wouldn't do anything for your lives, so why bother?**

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><p>All in all, Halloween was okay. Sure, she had been upset at first when she found out M'gann had been secretly dating Superboy. But Artemis wasn't mad about Superboy being taken. It was that M'gann had known about Artemis's past attraction to him and dated him behind her back anyway. Artemis found Superboy unfeeling and temperamental. It was good to some degree, but she mostly found it annoying; looks don't go that far in Artemis's book.<p>

Confession time: Her own older sister turned out to be a flop, so when chipper M'gann came along, Artemis was secretly glad that she could a have a sister-like figure in her life. They had giggled together, gossiped, and did what any other normal human girl would do (though it obviously pleased M'gann, Artemis would be lying if she said she didn't enjoying talking to the sweet Martian.)

Zatanna was nice too. Besides her magic, she was human. She didn't breathe underwater, she couldn't shape shift, and she didn't have super speed. Artemis felt that Zatanna could understand her from a better view point than the naïve Martian could. For instance, when Artemis was feeling low, Zatanna knew exactly what she needed: a girls' night out.

After the whole Harm and Secret incident, Zatanna and Artemis returned to the cave. It wasn't the easiest thing since Harm blew up their vehicles. Zatanna and Artemis had to travel to the nearest Beta-Transporter to get back to the Cave.

To Artemis's surprise, **he **was there. Speedy. Or Red Arrow, as he now calls himself. When she was little, Artemis had always admired Green Arrow and his sidekick. It must have been frustrating she had reasoned, to always be confused with Wally because of their similar hair color; he being titled "Speedy" didn't help either. But he had crossed the line that day, by insinuating that she couldn't shoot an arrow for her life. After that, she no longer found him cool and mysterious. On top of that, he threatened her after ambushing her in an alleyway in Gotham. What kind of honorable hero did that? But Artemis couldn't really talk about that because of her legacy. Artemis tried her best afterward to seem trustworthy to the Team. At first it seemed iffy, since she had let Cheshire get away, but eventually even Wally warmed up to her.

The Justice League knew of her origins. Hell, Artemis was sure that Robin was in on it too; by the way he smirked behind his mask. She could be wrong, of course, because no one knew what was really going on in his head. But Wally and the rest of the Team didn't know. And Artemis didn't think that it was necessary information for them. The people that she had come to think as a family would scorn her, just as her sister and father did. Harm was right; one couldn't fight if one was still fighting with themselves.

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><p><strong>If you guys like it, let me know. For those who know me from my other stories, do not despair, because I'm still working on them too.<strong>

**Please give me your comments, suggestions, and opinions!**


	2. Digging for the Truth

**Hey! I'm really pleased that many of you liked the prologue of this story. And you were so quick to review! I'd like to thank my readers, as well as Irenerb, prettykitty374, Tortor, nequam-tenshi, Ish, bearrose, LadyMysteri, and Celadon Catamount for reviewing. I apologize in advance for my drabbling.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice, or else more of the episodes would've come out a LOT sooner.**

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><p>"What is <strong>he<strong> doing here?" Artemis demanded when she had spotted the red-headed archer.

Red Arrow merely scowled at her behind his domino mask.

"Isn't he too good for the Justice League and this team?" she said mockingly.

He stalked up to her, looming menacingly over her, "And you should talk."

"Uh, yeah, and I can shoot arrows pretty well too. So you better watch your back." She growled.

Something about him just rubbed her the wrong way. It was like she had backtracked to the first day where she was fighting everyone. Deep down, some part of her acknowledged that it was the fact that in some people's eyes (or more specifically, Wally) she was merely his replacement until he gained the senses to join the Team.

"Oh, please," Red Arrow snorted, "We both know that I can outshoot you any day."

Artemis took a step forward, "Is that a challenge?"

A smirk was at his lips. And, no, it wasn't like Wally's smirk that looked so goofy that you wanted to punch him in the face. It was the kind that said I-know-more-about-you-than-you-think-so-you-better-watch-out.

"There is no challenge," he scoffed, "because you obviously don't shoot straight, if you know what I mean."

"I don't know and—"

"Enough." Artemis was interrupted by Batman, who was listening somewhat amusedly before deciding that the argument was getting out of hand. And Batman didn't like it when things weren't in his control.

"I can't take that lying down!" Artemis protested. She didn't know whether this was moment of courage or plain recklessness, by arguing with **the** Batman.

"You can and you will," Batman said, complete with the bat glare.

"Okay, this is awkward." Zatanna muttered. Kaldur and Robin had been sitting on the couch, trying not to seem too interested in the archers' argument, while Red Tornado stood mutely off to the side.

Sudden whirring was heard and Captain Marvel appeared arms full with three bags, "I'm back with tons of candy, and you can't have **any** of it."

"Sweet." Zatanna and Robin had said in unison, immediately by Captain Marvel's side as they attempted to sneak a few candies.

"Hey!" Captain Marvel protested, swatting them away and moving the bags out of reach. "Get your own!"

"Girls' night out."

"Bats wouldn't let me."

Both simultaneously answered. Turning to each other, they both blushed.

"Yeah, whatever. Zombie Marvel has candy. Can we please move on?" Artemis demanded crossly. The sooner _Speedy_ explained why he was here, the sooner he'd leave.

_Speedy_ ignored her, as well as Kaldur, Robin, and Zatanna.

"I wish to try some of the _Milky Way_. Perhaps eating some of it would remind so of the real Milky Way." Kaldur inputted.

"Eh, I prefer _Snickers_," Robin reached into one of Captain Marvel's bags. Only getting a…_Twix._

"Oh, I'll take that!" Zatanna eagerly grabbed the chocolate out of his hand and popped it into her mouth after tearing the wrapper off.

Robin didn't even look the least offended.

The other stupid guy (_Speedy_, who else besides Wally is stupid? Not to mention that the ginger haired idiot wasn't there. He was too busy flirting with M'gann, oblivious to her attachment to Superboy) grabbed a handful of candy.

"Here" he tossed Robin _Snickers_ and Kaldur a _Milky Way_. He merely held out his hand to Zatanna, who cheerily snatched a few more _Twix_.

"Hey!" Captain Marvel looked slightly crestfallen. Red Arrow's handful had been a lot of one of his bags.

"I do not think that it is highly necessary for you to rob Captain Marvel of his delicacies." Red Tornado interjected.

"Yeah," Captain Marvel agreed, "Halloween only comes around once a year!"

"But you're a **grown man**!" Artemis objected.

"Dude, I'm only ten!" and with a 'Shaa-zam!' he turned into a ten-year old boy. He gestured his arms to his body as a way of displaying that he was right.

"Oookay, I did not know that." To say that Artemis was surprised would've been an understatement.

Red Arrow laughed, "Of course you didn't."

"Don't think I forgot your challenge. Me. You. In the training room. Right now." Artemis snarled at him.

"I—" Batman began.

"You're on!" Red Arrow looked pleased.

Batman, on the contrary, was furious. No one disobeys the Batman.

Artemis confidently led the way to the training room with Red Arrow following, just as eager and assured. Robin merely shrugged and gestured for Zatanna to go first. Even Captain Marvel excitedly followed after transforming back.

Soon, the briefing room was empty with the exception of Red Tornado and Batman.

"I believe this is where we say something along the lines of—" Red Tornado started.

"Teenagers." Batman narrowed his eyes underneath his cowl.

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><p>"Hah!" Artemis declared triumphantly as she hit bull's-eye on the target for the <strong>thirtieth<strong> round. They had decided that they were going to fire five arrows per round until **someone** won more rounds than the other. All they managed to do is tie so far.

"Oh, please." Red Arrow scoffed. He quickly shot an arrow and it split right through Artemis's arrow.

"You little—" Artemis started angrily. He had no right to damage her arrows!

"Uh, uh, uh," Red Arrow waved his finger mockingly at Artemis. "Never start a fight with someone you can't win against."

Artemis stepped forward menacingly, "Threatening a girl, now are you? I suppose I should have expected it since you confronted me back at—"

"At where?" Robin interrupted. "I've never heard you mention Red Arrow at all."

Artemis quickly realized her mistake. She was still supposedly Green Arrow's niece, so what business did she have in Gotham?

Kaldur agreed, "I too find it most strange that you and Red Arrow have such animosity towards each other, despite only having met once."

"Ummm," Artemis struggled to explain. She wasn't the best liar, and even so, Red Arrow was there to call her out on her bluffs.

She knew he wasn't going to hesitate to sell her out either, by the way he arched one eyebrow and smirked.

"Artemis," Kaldur said flatly, "Is there something you wish to tell us?"

Zatanna stood quietly by Robin, unsure whether she should speak or not. She wasn't a part of the Team, but everyone was sure that she was going to be soon. Captain Marvel looked back and forth between

Maybe Black Canary was right. It wouldn't hurt to trust the Team with one of her secrets, right? She was so tempted to lighten her burden, but at the same time, she knew that they may never trust her ever again. Which was better: hiding her secret from the Team, carrying the burden of constantly lying or telling them now and having them never look at her the same way again?

Robin suddenly blurted out, "She's not —". Realizing what he was about to say, he slapped his hands over his mouth. Batman had **just** told him-as well as Red Tornado, Kaldur, and Red Arrow- that Artemis was entitled to her own secret identity.

"She's not Green Arrow's niece." And it didn't come from Robin (Certainly not Zatanna). It didn't even come from _Speedy_. No, it came from Kaldur.

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><p><strong>Kid Flash, Superboy, and Miss Martian have yet to appear in my fanfiction, but don't worry; they're coming soon! Lately I've been kinda horrible with my writing and inspiration. So I'm using this slight cliffhanger in an attempt satisfy you readers!<strong>

**Kaldur just revealed to Artemis that he now knows one of her secrets (well, so does everyone except for the rest of the Team) What happens next? Who knows? I'm honestly just writing this as I go along; so your reviews may sway the outcome of this story!**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	3. The Dropped Drama Bomb

**Merry Christmas! I know that it's been awhile since I last updated, and for that I apologize. Just to let my readers know, when new episodes come out OF COURSE MY STORY WILL NOT BE THE SAME. They may be similar, but my story will probably cut out and add some parts. For those of you who are WallArt fans, this is NOT one of those fics.**

**I'd like to thank sunnydayz56, LadyMysteri, bearrose, Emily, AllisonLoves, minnesota413, Tortor, prettykitty374, Courtbcpsmskjjmd, skatingandcruzing, kiaser15, and Lin36bffbecca for reviewing.**

**Warning: Characters may be a bit (okay that's an understatement), well, out of character.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice. If I did, I'd probably die out of pure happiness.**

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><p>The way he said it so…plainly made her believe that he held it in great suspicion and no denial on her part would change it.<p>

"Kaldur….." Artemis began somewhat shakily. How did he know? Half of her was dying to know how he could have possibly found out and the other…..not so much. "H-how did you…when did you…?" She trailed off.

This was hopeless. She felt naked in front of everybody- and definitely not in the fun way. All eyes were towards her, and Red Arrow was examining her as if she was the next target for his arrow to embed itself in.

The very knowledge of her legacy in the hands of her teammates was like handing her a death sentence. She could kiss her career as a hero goodbye; Artemis would never dare call herself a superhero because that required super powers or being extraordinarily good, and she didn't fill out either of the criteria.

_In a way,_ Artemis realized, _I'm going to be just like mom._ Paula Brooks- she refused to be known as "Mrs. Crock" anymore- had been crippled during a crime she committed (she **refused** to go into details) and was sent to jail, where she was reformed. Paula Brooks was now no longer able to fit in with either Justice League or Injustice League, but she had high hopes for Artemis that life would get better, life would **be** better.

Artemis wouldn't be able to be a part of the Justice League either if her secrets refused to remain buried. It was a true fact because despite being the "golden examples", heroes were quick to judge those coming from a criminal family.

She could tell from Kaldur's eyes that he had already made a decision about her.

_Why didn't I see it earlier? Kaldur questioned Wally, Connor, and M'gann about me behind my back!_

_Okay, I lied!_ Artemis wanted to shout, _But would you have trusted me anyway?_

Something had shifted in Red Arrow's eyes. Guilt. That was all she could see swimming in his eyes. Artemis briefly wondered if he regretted not exposing her himself. Or…maybe he actually felt….**sorry** for her. Somehow that didn't sit well with Artemis either.

Silence and thick tension had engulfed the training room while Artemis had been in thought. Once she had snapped out of it, she realized the extreme awkwardness, which had been courtesy of Kaldur, the drama bomb dropper. Artemis came to a realization that she was beyond furious at Kaldur. I mean, he **trusted** Sportsmaster, but not her? Hadn't she earned their respect either way?

"So Artemis **isn't** Green Arrow's niece, so what?" Robin said, with his trademark grin still on his face.

"_You either get traught or get dead!" _Robin's voice rang through her mind.

"I'm afraid the point in the matter is that she has been misleading us the whole time," Kaldur voiced.

"I-I'm going to make some nachos. Anyone want any?" It appeared that Captain Marvel couldn't take the tension.

No one answered him, and he left quickly. Robin had been looking interestedly between Kaldur and Artemis, only sneaking a glance at Zatanna once in awhile. Artemis was startled to realize that both Zatanna and Red Arrow were gazing at her intently. Artemis sent her a slight smile before glaring at _Speedy._

_Must …resist urge… to flick middle finger up…._

An eyebrow went up behind the domino mask. His lips twitched into a smirk. He was amused? **Amused** with her? Forget the urge to flick her middle finger up; she was trying so _frickin_ hard not to punch that smirk off his face!

"I think that she should prove herself first," _Speedy_ announced.

"There's no more time for your childish behavior," a voice gruffly said. Everyone turned to the source. There stood Batman, flanked by Red Tornado and a nacho plate wielding Captain Marvel.

No one had heard them come in.

_Scratch that_, Artemis thought, _Robin so clearly knows the way of the Bat._

Indeed, because Robin had moved to the other side of the room and, if possible, his grin was even wider.

Batman continued, "There's trouble in Happy Harbor, that's not exactly League required."

"Why can't the police handle it?" _Speedy _scowled_._

Batman's eyes narrowed, "_**Because**_ you all need the experience and something to do."

Artemis had to agree with Red Arrow. "What are we, the Teen Titans? Coming out when there's trouble?" she muttered.

Robin looked offended.

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><p><strong>Yeah, the last part was just a little joke. I know this is short, but I really wanted to give my readers something for Christmas. I'd like to thank my cousin for inspiring me for this chapter. She gave me the Red Arrow and Artemis action figures for Christmas. <strong>

**Again, the characters are not really themselves today, but please do NOT flame. Flaming will get you nowhere. **

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions! **


	4. Missed Shot

**Hey, I know it's been like forever since I last updated. It took a while to brainstorm for ideas, but I finally came up with something. For the next few chapters, it would be super GREAT if you guys could really give suggestion and opinions. **

**I'd like to thank all my readers; especially skatingandcruzing, Fanficrazy, mscorvette, Keep Moving Onwards, Lin36bffbecca, Tortor, Ravenhearst, and senorita artemis for reviewing.**

_Italics: flashbacks, inner thoughts, and references to Red Arrow (Speedy)_

**Warning: Characters are most likely OOC, and flashbacks may be incomprehensible.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice. (No matter how much I'd like to be the owner)**

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><p>"I don't get it," Artemis grumbled, "Why can't we go and actually <strong>do<strong> something?"

"Because," _Speedy_ seemed grouchy too, "we were ordered not to."

Artemis's fingers itched to do **something.** To actually pull an arrow back and watch it hit.

_Speedy_ must have noticed her frustration because he reminded her, "Orders are orders."

"I know!" she snapped. The worst part of the mission (besides the lack of action) was being paired with _Speedy._ Out of the seven people she could've been stuck with, it **had **to be _Speedy._

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><p>"<em>It is obvious that we cannot be amassed in large numbers," Kaldur stated.<em>

"_So what are we going to do?" Red Arrow folded his arms._

"_We are going to split into pairs and spread out. Perhaps we can catch the enemy this way," Kaldur answered._

"_Sweet! I call Megalicious!" Kid Flash declared._

"_Well, someone's got to keep Wally out of trouble," M'gann said with a tight smile. To Artemis, it was obvious that she wanted to spend time with Superboy._

"_Zatanna and I can take the west side of the perimeter," Robin cut in._

_Then he blushed. "Sorry," he mumbled to Zatanna._

"_No," Zatanna was smiling widely, "I don't mind at all."_

"_Guess that leaves me with Kaldur," Superboy muttered._

_Artemis felt offended. What about her? She didn't want to be left with Kaldur __**or**__ Red Arrow._

"_Um, hello? Forgetting someone here?" Artemis pointed to herself._

_Kaldur sent here a cold stare, "You are to go with Red Arrow…Unless…you have something of higher importance to do….."_

_Silence overfell the group_

"_Let's go…" Red Arrow had eventually called over his shoulder as he began to walk away._

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><p>A sudden flash of movement caught her eyes. Dark violet in the night, amongst the bricks.<p>

"I see someone," Artemis whispered to Red Arrow.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" he asked crossly, as he began to prepare his shot.

Artemis's eyes narrowed, "I remember this girl from somewhere."

"What makes you even think it's a girl?" Red Arrow demands. He lowers his bow to look over at her.

An abrupt crash brought both of their attention to down below.

The sound of Zatanna chanting and Robin's "battle laugh" filled the air.

"C'mon. Let's join the fight!" Artemis eagerly leaned forward to hop from the roof.

"No," Red Arrow pulled her arm back. "It's always best to be at a distance. Besides, this could be a distraction."

Robin's explosive batarangs went off. Artemis was concerned that she no longer heard Zatanna.

"Are you **kidding** me? They need help down there!" Artemis shouted angrily, pulling her arm out of his grasp.

"Fine," his eyes narrowed. "**You** stay here." With that, he jumped over the edge.

Artemis peered over the rooftop.

Zatanna was knocked out cold on the ground. Robin was standing protectively over her body, throwing batarangs and attempting to shock the girl with his hand- held taser.

The girl was agile and managed to dodge every attack easily (it was scary to see that **Robin **couldn't get an attack in).

Red Arrow was trying everything to distract and disarm the girl. While the boys fought, Artemis took a closer look at the girl. She wore a dark violet cloak with a hood, and Artemis found it impossible to see her face. The girl moved too fast for her to take proper aim. At last, she slowed down a little.

_Take the shot, Artemis! You can put a stop to this crazy "Mole" business by taking her out!_

Artemis drew her bow back, taking her shot and letting the arrow fly fast and hard towards its target.

All of a sudden, Red Arrow managed to grab the cloaked girl.

Everything seemed like it was in slow motion.

_3_

_2_

_1_

The arrow made its mark…..in Red Arrow's right arm.

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><p><em>Wally, Connor, and M'gann had returned after fifteen minutes.<em>

"_Why did you call us?" Connor demanded, crossing his arms._

_Batman said nothing to him, instead turning to address the rest of the group._

"_This," he stated, pointing to the picture that appeared, "is an ancient artifact that is inscribed to have the highest value to the lowest person, and the lowest value to the highest person. It washed up on the very shores of Happy Harbor. Scholars believe that this is the legendary Fata Mundi dagger, which is rumored to be the key to the world."_

"_Wait," Wally interrupted, "key to __**ending**__ the world, or key to __**saving**__ the world?"_

_Batman seemed amused, "Both, perhaps."_

"_What does this have to do with us?" Artemis scowled._

"_Several attempts were already made to acquire this artifact for the Shadows. They were all failed, but no doubt the League of Shadows is going to send their best in now. The police won't be able to handle highly trained assassins and thieves."_

"_So you want __**us**__ to handle it?" Red Arrow seemed incredulous._

"_Precisely. In about a week, we'll be able to find a more…..__**secure**__ location for the dagger."_

"_This'll be __**easy.**__" Connor scoffed, "We only have to protect it during the night for a week."_

_Batman's eyes narrowed, "Be on your guard."_

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><p>Red Arrow reeled back, his arm burning in agony as an arrow embedded itself into his skin. The green fletching slapped him in the face. <em>Artemis had shot him…..<em>

The hooded girl took this chance to flee. Robin dashed off in pursuit. It killed Roy to have to let her go. He couldn't very well go after her.

"Omigod!" Artemis jumped down from the roof.

"I'm so sorry!" she tried to pull the arrow out, but he wouldn't let her.

_I'm so dead…._ Artemis thought.

"It's fine," Red Arrow said gruffly, pulling out the arrow swiftly. Crimson blood covered the point and spilled from his wound.

"No, it's not." Artemis seemed uncomfortable.

"Why?" His line of vision began to blur and the world around him started spinning.

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><p>"What happened?" Zatanna got up, rubbing her head.<p>

Artemis stayed right next to Red Arrow, "I accidentally shot Red Arrow with one of my knockout arrows."

"The one with the knockout gas?" Zatanna started swaying; obviously she wasn't doing too well.

Artemis rushed to help her stand, "No…. I shot him with an arrow that injects a chemical through the target's bloodstream, rendering them unconscious."

Zatanna winced, "**THAT **might explain why he's on the ground."

"Hey. Wait. Where's Robin?" Zatanna looked around concerned.

"He went after the intruder, I'm sure he'll be- "Artemis started.

She was interrupted by a _whoosh _in the air. M'gann was eagerly flying towards them.

"Hey, I'm here to…." She began. Then she saw Red Arrow's body and screamed.

Zatanna and Artemis could only watch as within the timeframe of a minute, Kid Flash came running in and Superboy angrily jumping in.

"What's wrong M'gann?" Superboy asked concerned. His brows furrowed and he looked around for whatever made her scream.

"Woah! Why is there a pool of blood around Speedy-er Red Arrow?" Wally asked, as he zipped back and forth between Red Arrow's body and the girls.

_Get traught. That's the only option you have, Artemis._

"M'gann," Artemis said instead, "get the bio-ship."

She nodded, and in no time the red ship loomed into view.

"Superboy!" came a sudden shout.

It was Kaldur. Evidently, Superboy had left in a rush upon hearing M'gann's scream, and Kaldur had followed.

Everyone turned to look at him.

Kaldur stared at all of them, "What are you doing? You are to be at your posts!"

"Red Arrow's hurt really bad." M'gann explained as she telepathically hoisted the said person up.

Kaldur's eyes narrowed and eventually landed on Artemis's arrow on the ground.

"You did this, didn't you?" he asked quietly.

"Kaldur, I swear…" Artemis attempted to explain herself.

"Man! She got away!" Robin angrily stalked back.

Upon seeing the whole group, he asked, "**What** happened here?"

"Artemis shot Red Arrow." Kaldur explained. His voice was cold, and Artemis was pretty sure that she knew what he was thinking.

"Well, yeah, I saw that…but" Artemis was pretty sure he was smirking a **little **bit, "When did you all get here?"

_Obviously he thinks that Speedy will be just fine_ Artemis thought.

"We will talk later," Kaldur said at last. "Right now, we must get Red Arrow and Zatanna to the medical bay in the Cave."

M'gann morphed a kind of stretcher-ish thing in the bio-ship and laid Red Arrow down gently. Artemis helped Zatanna get to her seat.

"Artemis, we will need to speak of this later." Kaldur was no longer looking her in the eyes.

"Yeah, we'll see you all later," Robin stated, waving as the hatch began to close.

"Ugh!" Artemis groaned as she sank into her own chair.

She watched the twinkling lights of Happy Harbor go by. Then the treetops. And finally, the décor of the hangar.

_Home sweet home. _

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><p><strong>I actually wanted to cut this chapter off after Artemis shot Red Arrow for a cliffhanger, but then I decided that I seriously owed you guys some story. <strong>

**Senorita Artemis gave me the idea to have Artemis accidentally shoot someone, and I decided that it just HAD to be Roy. But we all know that Artemis has a better aim than that, so why DID the arrow hit Roy instead? Feel free to give your speculations!**

**I made up the "Fata Mundi" dagger (hence why it is a super lame idea); another thing you readers could answer is whether you think I should make this mission a lot longer and more important or not. The hooded girl is an OC of mine.**

**Please give your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	5. Follow Through

**Hey! I know that it's been awhile. I actually had a chapter ready to go before the premiere of "Misplaced", but decided to alter my story and keep track of the time line to have it sort of fit with the current plot line. I'll try to keep up with the episodes, but there are no guarantees.**

**I'd like to thank BlueBird722, nequam-tenshi, GhostDog401, Angel of Mysteries, Lin36bffbecca, Jedi Ani Unduli, and candi711 for reviewing.**

**Also, it'd be really helpful if you reviewed, giving me your opinions, comments, or suggestions. For those of you who actually read this first part, I'm looking for OC's for my story. I only need twelve in total: six will be superheroes and six will be super villains (all teenagers). Here's the format for the review (it MUST be COMPLETELY filled out in order to be accepted):**

**Supervillan or Hero:**

**Name:**

**Alias (Secret Identity):**

**Age:**

**Power(s):**

**Other Talents:**

**Weakness (es)/ Flaw (s):**

**Place of Origin:**

**Place of Residence:**

**Physical Appearance:**

**Relationships with any other characters:**

**The first six completed hero forms that are NOT rip-off versions of each other are going to be taken for the story. The same goes for the villains. If you change your mind after submitting a character, let me know by private messaging me. If you're character is already in a chapter, then I could always kill them off (yes, I know that sounds violent). Please be original in your character (i.e. I don't want most of my review to be other Kid Flashes or Robins, or Shape shifters), and keep in mind that these characters are NOT going to be on the Team or the Injustice League or anything like that. Feel free to collaborate on characters with others and include their hero or villain as your boyfriend or girlfriend or whatever. I'd prefer if you sent me ONE villain and/or hero until March 29. If I don't have enough, then you can send more OC's.**

**Warning: Certain characters may use profanity at some point. Some (er, most) characters are OOC.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice. **

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><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 1, 03:27 EDT_

Artemis was bored. Extremely. Her mind was still so fuzzy and confused that she could hardly remember the events leading up to her being in the "Therapy Room". Black Canary had left a few moments ago with Green Arrow. Artemis actually had no idea whether it was to discuss her or swap spit.

_Thump, Thump._

She bolted upright in her chair. Did she imagine that? She scooted along the back wall, sure that that was where the sound came from. Finally, her eyes locked onto the vent in the corner.

A black boot appeared, kicking the vent open. A person climbed out. Robin. Of course, Artemis should've known.

"Hey," Robin grinned.

"Okay, why did you break into here?" Artemis asked, folding her arms.

"Thought you might want a little update amidst your little….solitary confinement." Robin was smirking, probably because he knew enough to keep toying with her.

"Fine!" she relented.

"Well," Robin said jerking his thumb towards the entrance, "for starters, you should probably know that the JL are discussing you out there."

Artemis rolled her eyes, "Of course. Accidentally shoot a guy in the arm, and you're automatically accused of turning evil."

"No," Robin shook his head, "they're wondering whether you're fit for the Team."

"What!" Artemis's voice rose, "I've proven myself several times already!"

Robin shrugged, "Whatever."

He switched the topic, "Kaldur is in the discussion too. The rest of us had to wait around."

Artemis was sullen, "Let me guess: he's convinced that **I'm **the mole just because I accidentally shot _Speedy._"

"Red Arrow!" Robin automatically corrected.

"Whatever!" she huffed, "Is he okay?"

"Yeah," Robin grinned, "he's concerting right now."

"Concerting?" Artemis was confused. What was with Robin and his word games?

"You know," Robin explained, "**disconcerted** is the opposite of concerted. Red Arrow's taking control of the situation."

"So he's on Kaldur's side?" Artemis gulped. Someone on the Justice League was going to take _Speedy _seriously, and frankly, Artemis basically gave them the evidence!

"You'd be surprised," Robin gave a sly smile.

Artemis's eyes widened, "Wait. He's **defending **me?"

Robin shrugged, "Pretty much. I guess the only thing the JL is concerned about is **how** you got those toxins."

_Thump, Thump. _Footsteps were heard down the hallway.

"Guess that's my cue to go," Robin grinned and leapt back into the ventilation shaft. In about a second, the vent was replaced.

The door opened.

"Artemis?"

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 1, 03:35 EDT_

Her heart slowed down. Red Arrow.

"What are you doing in here?" her voice gave way to an accusing tone.

He raised an eyebrow, "Is that really how you want to talk to me?"

Her eyes fell on the tightly- wound bandage on his upper right arm.

She huffed as she plopped back into the green chair, "Are you here to chew me out for shooting you in the arm?"

"No," _Speedy _seemed hesitant. "I'm here to tell you that you didn't shoot me in the arm."

Artemis forced herself to laugh, "Have you gone crazy? My arrow hit you **right in the arm**."

_Speedy _growled. Obviously he didn't like being laughed at. "I'm telling you that it's not your fault. A rookie like you could have easily missed a moving target locked in combat with an ally."

"Whoa, there, _Speedy_. I'm no rookie. Besides, haven't you ever heard of **friendly fire**?" Artemis retorted, careful not to insult him.

"Anyway," _Speedy _ignored her, "I'm here to tell you that you're off the team."

* * *

><p><em>November 2, 21:33 EDT<em>

"I don't see anything," Artemis huffed into her earpiece. She rubbed her hands against her arm to try to keep the warmth that the cold air was currently stealing from her.

"_According to the Justice League database, she's extremely elusive and __**hasn't **__ever been detained. But that's about all they have on her. They don't have any description of her or what crimes she even committed!"_

"I know that," Artemis scowled, "It's just that it's practically the same thing I told **you**. She's just some urban street legend from the dirty parts of Gotham."

On the other line, she could hear him groan in irritation. It was only their first night working together, but who knew how long they were going to be able to be semi- civilized with each other?

"_Hold on. I think I spotted something . Rendezvous at my coordinates." _

Artemis growled. _Speedy _was just so paranoid.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 1, 04:02 EDT_

"_Well?" Red Arrow seemed cross._

"_Depends on whether you aren't trying to sabotage me, Speedy." Artemis answered curtly._

"_I'm giving you the chance to catch a highly trained operative from the League of Shadows. Shadow operatives are rarely caught. If you manage to bring her in or help __**me**__, you might get back on the team."_

"_I told you that I don't __**personally **__know her." _

_Red Arrow was convinced that Artemis could lead him to the Shadow operative who escaped. _

"_Then tell me what you know about her. You said you knew her. She's the reason that I won't be able to pick up a bow for the next few days." Speedy was adamant on squeezing the information of Artemis. The fact that he was out of commission for awhile fueled his desire to catch the Shadow._

_Artemis winced. In truth, she actually felt __**guilty**__. Red Arrow could not shoot with both of his arms like she could. She had shot him in his right arm, the arm that he used to draw back his bow. _

"_Okay. I remember hearing this from my apartment building. Apparently, for the past two years, someone's been leaving stuff at people's doors. The thing is, the items left behind are expensive and __**stolen**__. The people of my neighborhood think that it's basically like some Robin Hood; steal from the rich and give to the poor. No one ever spotted her until a kid started telling people that he saw a hooded girl leave a vase behind on his doorstep. Rumors and assumptions about her escalated. People started calling her 'Mirage' because you don't know whether she's real or just some illusion or figment of your imagination." Artemis finally gave in._

"_What does this have to do with __**you**__?" Red Arrow interrupted._

_Artemis scowled, "I was getting to it. Before Arrow and Bats recruited me, I did patrols by myself in Gotham. I was on the rooftop near an art gallery when I spotted her. At the time, I didn't know that much about the legend. I thought she was just another civilian like me who grew tired of the crime rates. I just so happened to recognize her costume from that night."_

"_Well, then maybe you could help me find her. Bats put you on suspension until further notice, but that doesn't stop you from doing what you did before you joined the Team."_

_Artemis folded her arms, "I'm only going to do this so that I can prove myself. Not because I owe you anything."_

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_November 2, 21:55 EDT_

Artemis shot her zip line arrow at the wall of the building adjacent to her destination. Then, using her bow, she swung down.

"Finally." _Speedy _growled, "Took you long enough."

She didn't know why she did it, but Artemis found herself childishly sticking her tongue out at him.

_Speedy _looked slightly amused for a few moments before snapping to attention.

He pointed to an old, abandoned hotel, "I saw a violet blur swoop into the sixth story window."

"Why didn't you apprehend her?" Artemis snapped. As much as she wanted action and excitement, Artemis would have been fine if Red Arrow had already caught Mirage.

He scowled, "**Batman **couldn't catch her, much less ever see her. I wasn't going to go without back up with an injured arm, or else she'd escape."

She retorted, "The Team managed to find Red Tornado in **one **day, while the League couldn't find him in the course of a **week**."

"Let's just go." He started to make his way over to the building.

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_November 2, 22: 19 EDT_

"Who's **he**?" _Speedy _pointed accusingly to the ebony haired boy next to her.

"**He **was just giving me some information on Mirage. Apparently, he's run into her a couple of times." Artemis replied evenly.

Red Arrow and she had eventually split up in their search for her. She had been on the fifth floor when Red Arrow came dashing down the hallway above her in pursuit of Mirage. Artemis had been eager to join the chase, but had been quickly distracted by the boy now standing next to her. Red Arrow lost Mirage somewhere along the way and had returned to the rooftop of the hotel, where Artemis was waiting.

"Spill, kid." Red Arrow snapped.

The boy scowled in response, "First off, it's_ Inferno. _Second, I already **was **going to,_ Speedy_. Famous sidekicks like you don't know half of the things happening in the cities."

If looks could kill, the boy would have been dead ten times over by the way Red Arrow was glaring at him.

He continued, "I often watch over this district of Gotham. Mirage's been coming here lately to do God-knows-what on the second highest floor. I was going to investigate tonight, but I guess company doesn't hurt."

"That's **all **you know?" Red Arrow growled.

Inferno shrugged, "Hey, all I do is fight her. The only other thing I know is that she can turn invisible and intangible."

Artemis turned to Red Arrow, "That explains why my arrow hit you instead of her. My arrow went right through her!"

"It also slightly justifies why she's so difficult to detain." Red Arrow added. He seemed pretty satisfied knowing just a **teensy **bit more than the League.

"C'mon," Inferno beckoned them to the door leading inside, "now that she's probably gone, we can try to find out whatever she's hiding down there."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City: Tenth floor of Hotel Haven<em>

_November 2, 22:40 EDT_

Artemis rubbed her eyes, "God, the dust in here irritates my eyes."

They were currently in the deluxe suite, searching for anything suspicious. It had to have been the twentieth room they've checked so far.

"Over here!" Inferno called out from a bedroom doorway.

Both she and Red Arrow rushed over and peered inside. The bedroom was the only room that appeared to have been used within the past few days. Papers were hung all over the walls and a computer was still whirring.

Red Arrow hurriedly turned the screen on. The dark room was immediately lit by the computer screen's brightness. He frowned as he read the contents of what was left on the computer.

Somewhere in the walls, a rat stirred and scampered. Artemis and Inferno stiffened and looked around tensely.

"You've got to look at this!" Red Arrow moved aside and motioned to the screen, "The League of Shadows definitely hired her to retrieve the Fata Mundi dagger."

Before they could head over, a rat scampered across the floor.

"Gross!" Artemis yelped as she hopped up and down to avoid it running over her feet.

Red Arrow and Inferno rolled their eyes.

"I'll get it." Inferno summoned a net out of his hands. The archers could only watch in amazement as he bent to scoop the rat up. The net appeared to be of fire, but was not destructive and burning.

_Wham! _The three of them watched as the rat morphed before their eyes to a hooded girl that was quick to low- kick Inferno to the ground.

"Shit!" Inferno cried out in surprise.

It was Mirage. Her violet hood was pulled over her head so that you could only see her mouth.

Mirage wagged her finger at them, "You should know better than to snoop around, especially you, Inferno."

Fury blazed in Inferno's eyes and he was quick to throw a fireball at her from the floor. Artemis was determined **not **to shoot at Mirage again because, quite frankly, she couldn't afford to shoot Inferno in the arm, either.

Mirage easily ducked and morphed into a sleek tiger. She pounced on Inferno. To Artemis, it looked like she was being playful…..just like…..**Cheshire**.

Red Arrow rushed into the fight. He shoved Mirage off of Inferno, and a surprised Mirage hit the wall. She morphed into an extremely familiar woman that Artemis and Red Arrow both knew. She unleashed a powerful canary cry, and all three held there ears in agony as the windows around them shattered. Artemis struggled to finally draw an arrow, but managed to aim it Mirage.

Mirage stopped and looked Artemis in the eyes. Artemis almost wasn't sure if she should be intimidated by the know-it-all smile she was giving. "Artemis, right? Daughter of-"

Before she could say anymore, the arrow went whizzing towards her. Mirage simply smirked and let it pass through her, straight into the wall behind her.

"You don't think I didn't learn my lesson from last time?" Artemis smiled slyly.

Her arrow let out knockout gas on impact, and Mirage was quickly swatting the gas away to prevent passing out. After coughing for a few moments, she collapsed on the floor.

"Good job," Inferno said as he got up and dusted himself off.

"Yeah," Red Arrow echoed, "Guess we call the League to take her in."

"Hold on," Artemis interrupted. She turned to Inferno, "I think you left out some things, like the fact that she's a **shape shifter**."

Inferno shrugged, "That's the first time she's done that, honest." Then he walked over to the unconscious Mirage and reached over to pull the hood off.

"Don't." Artemis's voice rang out. Mirage may have been caught, but what if she **was **someone Artemis knew? She had no idea that Cheshire had been Jade before attempting to apprehend her and that had jeopardized the Team's initial trust in her.

_Not to mention, with my identity crisis going on, I think I should at least try a little to respect other people's secret identities. _

_Speedy _locked eyes with Artemis for a few moments, before shuffling back to the computer.

"Damn it!" he cursed, and he quickly turned around. From where she stood, she could now tell that the screen was completely blank.

Artemis turned too, and the archers both watched as Mirage slowly sank through the floor.

Inferno gaped at her in shock, causing her to giggle and (at least Artemis **thought** so) wink.

The three stared at the floor in disappointment. So much for catching the elusive Mirage.

_God, _Artemis thought, _I've been fooled __**twice**__._

* * *

><p><strong>Just a little clarification and some notes:<strong>

**Inferno has the power to create things or creatures of fire. Basically, he can will fire to take any form and even become "water-proof" or "inflammable". I know this makes no sense, but I wanted my OC to have more than just regular fire powers. Don't worry, I'm not being unrealistic. Usually doing things like making his fire water-proof and stuff strains him.**

**Mirage was originally going to be Chameleon (alias: Camille Leon), but for some reason, I just like "Mirage" better. **

**For those of you who plan to make OC's, depending on whether your character is a villain or superhero, they may know one of my OC's.**

**We now know that the only reason Artemis's arrow hit Red Arrow was because of Mirage's intangibility. I guess the inspiration for how Artemis got suspended from the team came from how she got ON the Team in the first place (saving Wally's butt from Amazo by shooting at him, while depending on Amazo to mimic Martian Man hunter). New question: Does Artemis ACTUALLY know Mirage?**

**Yay! Red Arrow and Artemis (sort of) put their differences aside to become (sort of) civilized towards each other! I'm going to try to update as fast as I can, but reviews with ideas and suggestions may REALLY help speed up the process. In the meanwhile, I'll probably be behind the YJ storyline.**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	6. Out of Place

**Hey! I'd like to thank BAFlash, minnov, batman-defeats-all, Jedi Ani Unduli, candi711, Silver Wolf Demon, MidnightRoulette, Angel of Mysteries, Obiwan1022, Buried Secrets Fan, Mystery RoseWriter, and Gerren for reviewing and/or submitting OC's. **

**Here's what I have so far (that I'm 100% sure of):**

**Villains: Stake**

**Blast**

**Lilac**

**Midnight Prowler**

**Heroes: Sin**

**Jeta**

**Halfte**

**Insight**

**I'd just like to remind you that after March 29, you can submit more. I'd REALLY like it if I had more female villains and male superheroes. (Because so far, there are NO boy superheroes and only ONE female villain). Originally, I only requested six for each side, but I may actually accept more. OC's will generally not be in the story until I have all the OC's I need.**

**Bold: emphasized words**

_Italicized: thoughts, time, flashbacks_

**Warning: (You know the drill) Characters are OOC. Profanity used by some characters at certain points.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice. I DO own my OC's, though. If you feel like copying my storyline, private message me first.**

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_November 5, 17:03 EDT_

"Mom! I'm going to go meet with a friend now. I probably won't be back until late tonight!" Artemis called as she began to unlock the apartment door.

"I'm surprised, Artemis," Paula wheeled out into the hallway, "Normally you only leave for your 'extra-curricular activities'."

Artemis spun around. _Shit, I was hoping she'd just let me go._

Paula raised her eyebrow upon looking at her daughter's outfit.

"Are you actually wearing a skirt **willingly**?"

Artemis tugged on the long, pink skirt self-consciously, "Yeah."

Paula smiled knowingly. "It's a boy, isn't it? You're trying to impress a boy."

"NO!" Artemis quickly denied, her cheeks reddening. _The very thought….._

Her mom frowned, "Well you can't go looking like that. Follow me."

Artemis followed her into Paula's bedroom. She anxiously plopped down on the bed while Paula rummaged through her closet.

"Here," Paula finally pulled out something, "I wore this when I was young. It might be a little too fancy, but that's-"

"It's perfect!" Artemis breathed out, running her hands over the smooth, silky fabric. She had worried beforehand that her current attire wasn't suitable enough for tonight's events.

Paula smiled, "Back in Vietnam, girls of your age wear these white Ao dai's to symbolize their maturity and growing beauty and strength as young women."

"Thanks, Mom." Artemis replied, her eyes getting misty.

She shooed at her in response, "Go. Put it on. I want to see how it looks on you."

A few minutes later, Artemis reemerged from the bathroom.

"Artemis!" Paula scolded, "Take your hair out of that ridiculous ponytail right now!"

Grumbling, Artemis pulled out her green hair tie; letting her blond hair cascade over her shoulders. Then she knelt down in front of her mom.

Paula's nimble fingers quickly untangled her long, blonde hair and pulled the front bangs back.

"You know," Paula began sadly, "The last time I wore this was when-"

She was interrupted by a knock on the door.

Startled for moment, Paula wheeled herself to the door.

When she swung the door open, she was surprised to see a young man in a tuxedo. Oddly enough, he wore sunglasses as well.

_Almost as if he is hiding something _Paula thought.

Evidently, he was shocked to see her as well. Silence overcame them until Artemis came bounding down the hallway.

"Mom! Who's at the door?"

They both turned to look at her, and Paula was proud to say that the visitor's jaw dropped wide open.

"Take off those stupid sunglasses, _Speedy_," Artemis put her hands on her hips.

"**Friend**, hmm?" Paula smiled as both archers turned pink.

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_November 2, 23:19 EDT_

"_So what's next?" Artemis was expecting Red Arrow to take charge of their mission. He was the one who recruited her anyway._

_But why did he ask __**her **__of all people? She knew for a fact that he did not trust her. Even Superboy would have been a more likely choice than she._

"_You and me are going to the Happy Harbor Museum Gala," Red Arrow simply responded._

"_Why?" Artemis was incredulous. How had they gone from tracking down a Shadow operative to attending one of the rich and wealthy's parties?_

"_You should find something nice to wear. I'll meet you by that transporter in Gotham." _

_He didn't answer her question. _

_It suddenly dawned on Artemis that by inviting her to go to the gala as a civilian, Red Arrow would be giving away his identity. He was going to __**trust **__her with his identity. Trust __**her**__. It seemed so unbelievable when you remembered that he was the guy who threatened her to not try anything funny._

"_That's not necessary," Artemis hesitated before talking. "I'll give you my address so that you can pick me up by car. It'll be easier to get there without the League knowing."_

_Shock was evident on Red Arrow's face._

_Good, she surprised him. The only reason he probably didn't trust her was because she had replaced him and he did not know much about his replacement. Well, she could prove that she was __**not **__the mole by sharing some harmless information with him. Besides, he had followed her to the transporter once, so couldn't he have followed her to her apartment building?_

"_Fine." _

_There was a pause in between, then "I'll pick you up around 5:30. It might take awhile since we're now __**driving **__from Gotham to Happy Harbor."_

_Artemis smiled slightly, attempting a slight joke. "Let me guess, you call your car something along the lines of the 'Speedy-mobile'?"_

_Red Arrow scowled, "Don't be ridiculous."_

"_So you call it the 'Asshole-mobile', then?"_

* * *

><p><em>Happy Harbor <em>

_November 5, 18:13 EDT_

Artemis rubbed her arms self-consciously. She never felt comfortable around the rich, high-class people. The line shifted forward slightly..

"Relax." _Speedy _put his arm over her shoulder. Whether it was to actually reassure her or just for display, she didn't know. But for _Speedy's _sake, it had better have been the latter. Seriously, did he always have to act like he was better than her?

"I can't!" she hissed back. "I stink at lying! I don't belong here."

"Artemis," _Speedy _struggled to keep his voice low, "All you're supposed to do is pose as my 'date'. Basically, all you do is stay by my side and look pretty. Think you can do that?"

Normally Artemis would slug him for a sexist comment like that, but she couldn't while she was pretending to be dainty and refined.

Meanwhile, they had finally reached the front of the admission line.

At the podium, the ebony haired man with a waxed mustache snobbily asked, "Name, please?"

_So the moment of truth arrives. _

_Speedy _hesitated for a few moments before tightening his grip on Artemis's shoulder. "Roy. Roy Harper."

Artemis had to resist snickering. Roy? All that coolness and arrogance surrounding him and his name was ROY? Sure, that name wasn't lame, but it was an awful let down from what she had been expecting.

"Ah, but of course, Mr. Harper," the man fake smiles, "But I was talking about your lady."

Before _Roy _can give him a fake name or pathetic accuse of any kind, an annoying voice rang out.

"Oh, Roooooyyyy!" the heavy French accent made Artemis even wish for **Wally's** voice instead. For Artemis, that was saying **a lot**.

The speaker was a tall, curvy brunette with freckles and dazzling brown eyes.. Her long, floor-length black dress _swished_ as she walked (or practically ran) towards them.

She turned to the man, "Monsieur, zhey are vith me."

He stiffened and hesitated before bowing and launching into the same speech. "Welcome to the Happy Harbor Museum Gala. We hope you will delight in the artwork that we have accumulated over the years. Most of the paintings and sculptures in the exhibits are up for auction. We are proud to say, though, that the Happy Harbor Museum houses the one and **only **Fata Mundi dagger for the next two days."

**Roy** (could you believe it?) guided Artemis in past the man.

The brunette walked with them, beaming as she clutched tightly onto Roy's free arm.

Roy smiled at the girl, "Thanks, Camille."

Artemis could easily note the fakeness behind his smile.

"Anyzhing for you, Roy," Camille batted her eyelashes.

Artemis coughed, interrupting any more of Camille's flirting attempts.

Camille switched her attention to Artemis. "And who is zhis **lovely** girl?

_Sarcasm noted, Frenchie_.

Luckily, before Artemis could blow their cover by punching her, a tanned, dark -brunette boy with eerily dark blue eyes joined them, taking away Camille's attention.

Grinning, Camille introduced him, "Zhis is my companion for zhe night. 'es name is Caleb."

Artemis's breath got caught in her throat when she finally got a good look at him. _It can't be….._

Caleb smirked at Artemis. Her heart rate increased, but not in the good way. True, it beat with adrenaline, but not the same one that she got when she was in her costume.

_You're supposed to be dead. _She wanted to say. _How the __**hell **__are you still alive?_

Camille clung onto Roy's arm for a few more moments, as she whispered into his ear.

Roy pulled away abruptly, and Camille pouted, her brown eyes blinking innocently.

At last, Camille sauntered off, throwing an "Au revoir!" over her shoulder.

Following her, Caleb brushed past Artemis. Roughly. The sudden contact shocked Artemis, and she stumbled into Roy, who easily caught her. Artemis didn't even have to really look at Caleb to know that he was smirking.

"You alright?" Roy actually seemed to be **concerned.** That scared Artemis more than anything.

* * *

><p><em>Happy Harbor<em>

_November 5, 19:30 EDT_

"Camille." Roy finally lost control. He massaged his temples. "Stop. I swear, you need to go back to that Caleb guy."

She sniffled, "You are barely here, Roy. Vhat is wrong about catching up vith an old friend?"

Roy groaned, "I need room to **breathe**. Just go."

Camille pouted before dashing off from the table to find Caleb.

_God, she's so annoying. I don't think I ever remembered her being this aggravating._

Artemis came back to the table shortly. She still looked a bit shaky.

He didn't know why he did it, other than the fact that he felt he could trust her a **little **bit more after meeting her mom and seeing her home.

"Do you want to dance?" he extended a hand.

Her eyes widened in shock. Nonetheless, she took his hand.

Artemis wasn't the best dancer, but he managed to make them look somewhat professional and get her to smile a bit. Her hand was unreasonably warm and he could feel heat spread through him like a wildfire. But not in the agonizing, burning kind of way, but the feeling of warmth you get when you held your hands over a fire on a cold night.

"How long have you known Camille?" Her question seemed extremely random to him.

Roy racked his brain to come up with the answer. "I met her two years ago. Why?"

"Nothing." Artemis averted her gaze to the floor.

Roy lifted his left arm, and Artemis went under and did her walk about. It was the only part of the waltz that she actually really felt comfortable with.

Roy attempted to restart the conversation, "Her French accent wasn't always that annoying, you know. Now that I think of it, this is the only time it's been that heavy."

"She's trying to impress you with her French." was all she said.

Roy winced. He didn't want to hear confirmation that she liked him.

"I can speak French and Vietnamese somewhat fluently, so I know what she said to you earlier," she added as an afterthought.

"What did she say then?" It was challenge. In addition, a part of him was curious to know what Camille had been saying, anyway.

Artemis smiled and leaned in towards his ear, mocking Camille's earlier position. Though unlike Camille, her whispering seemed somewhat seductive. "Je suis perdu. Pouvez-vous me donner les instructions de votre coeur? I'm lost. Could you give me the directions to your heart?"

Upon Roy's shocked expression, Artemis clarified, "It's not that hard to imitate her. She's your typical rich French girl."

The wheels in Roy's head began to turn. _Wait…__**French**__?_

Frowning, he pulled away from Artemis. "Hold on a minute." Already, warmth was leaving him.

"Artemis, something's off about Camille. She's **never **been like that. When I first met her, she didn't even **have** a French accent."

"What are you saying, Roy?"

"Stay on your toes. I'll be right back." He headed off through the crowd.

"Wait!" Artemis cried out after him.

* * *

><p><em>Happy Harbor<em>

_November 5, 19:47 EDT_

Just like that, Roy was gone. Every one else was gone too.

_This is too freaky _Artemis thought. She was completely alone in the vast ballroom.

Just a minute ago, it had been filled with the tinkling of glasses and the laughter as people danced together. Various objects that people had been holding had dropped to the ground.

"Vhere did everybody go?"

Okay, scratch that. She was completely alone in a vast ballroom **with an annoying French chick**.

"Zhis is not funny!" she cried out when no one answered her.

As she turned, she spotted Artemis. "Vhere is everybody?"

Artemis shrugged, not knowing herself.

"Just great! Who will protect me now?" Camille threw her hands in the air exasperatedly.

"_Stay on your toes." _Artemis shook her head. What had Roy said about Camille before he disappeared?

"_Something's off about Camille."_

As a precaution, Artemis glanced at Camille.

Annoying French accent? Check. Brown hair? Check. Designer clothing? Check. Purple eyes? Che-…..**Wait. **

"Camille" caught her weird look. "Vhat, Artemis?"

How did Camille know her name? Roy surely wouldn't have mentioned it.

_Forgetting something, Artemis? Camille showed up with __**Caleb**__. That's bad news all by itself._

Of course. "Camille" wasn't the real Camille Leon.

_Gee, Artemis. Who have you fought recently that can shape shift and is after the Fata Mundi dagger?_

"You can cut the act now, Mirage." Artemis narrowed her eyes, "It's only the two of us."

Camille blinked rapidly in surprise.

Then, Artemis watched as she morphed into an ebony-haired girl wearing what looked to be ninja garb.

_So I'm __**actually **__right._

"It is a shame you found out so early. Zhe French accent vas so much fun!" she smiled, despite being discovered.

_She's really starting to remind me of Cheshire_.

She still had the purple eyes. They sparkled with mischief as Artemis stared her down.

"What did you do to the **real **Camille? Where did you take everyone else?" Artemis demanded.

Mirage grinned, "So **many **questions. Unfortunately, we only have about less than five minutes before the supporters for this whole room explode."

Artemis's charcoal gray eyes darkened. "Of course. I forgot about your 'friend'. How do you know him?"

She only laughed in response, "To think that you're asking all these questions when you are so **clearly** not in the position to do so."

She had a point. Currently, Artemis was without her bow and arrows.

To Artemis's complete utter surprise, she slid Artemis's bag across the floor to her. Artemis's compound bow was in there, and she didn't hesitate to draw an arrow at Mirage.

Mirage rolled her eyes, "Oh, please. We don't have the time for this. Go find your little friends. The Martian, the Atlantean, and the clone should be outside somewhere."

"Not so fast," Artemis snarled. "I'm only going to ask you one more time. Where. Did. You. Take. Everybody?"

Mirage blinked back in surprise. "**I** didn't do anything."

Artemis snorted, "Okay, then. Who did?"

Mirage stood still for a few moments. Then she startled Artemis by changing into a hawk and breaking through the window.

For some reason, Artemis just let her go. She stuck the ear comm. in and pressed on it to contact Roy.

"Red Arrow? Come in."

The only reply was static.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 5, 20:19 EDT_

Artemis had easily located the Team. Kaldur, M'gann, and Connor had all immediately flown back on the bio ship after the adults disappeared. True, they were surprised when Artemis joined them, but they didn't kick her out or anything. They quickly set up a refugee camp for the children at Happy Harbor High.

"Twinkle, twinkle little star…" Artemis sang to the little children on the mat before her.

"Umm….." she hesitated. She had **no **idea what was supposed to come next. "Yes sir, yes sir, three bag's full."

The children all giggled and laughed.

"Hey, Artemis!" Wally came in with a baby in his arms.

"Yeah?" She turned.

"Where's Red Arrow? Not that you'd know, but….uh…." Wally fumbled with the words.

Artemis looked down. Was she supposed to tell him the truth?

Luckily, Wally was easily distracted.

"Holy crud! You're wearing a dress!" Apparently that shocked him.

_Play nice, Artemis. You're on thin ice as it is._

"I didn't get the chance to change or anything." Artemis defended herself. Besides, what was so shocking about her in a dress?

"Whatever." Wally looked down at the floor. "Gotta go now. Meet us at the Cave in half an hour."

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 6, 0:01 EDT_

A little boy appeared all of a sudden in front of them.

"It worked! I did it!" he exclaimed, before turning to them.

"Captain?" Kaldur stepped forward.

He smiled. "Quick, read my mind!" he told M'gann.

Her eyes glowed for a few moments before she declared, "He's Captain Marvel! And there's **another **world where the **children** are missing!"

Wally scoffed, "Look, I'll admit him getting inside the Cave is a little weird. But just because he **believes **he's Captain Marvel, it doesn't mean anything."

Robin ignored him, "Of course! Why didn't I think of it before? Captain Marvel has the ability to travel between both worlds!"

Wally's jaw practically hit the floor in shock.

"Okay, what did Bats tell you?" he turned to Captain Marvel.

"So here's the plan…." Captain Marvel started.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 7, 09:16 EDT_

Artemis felt awful. Poor Zatanna. They had managed to reunite both worlds, but at a cost: Zatara became Dr. Fate. Now Zatanna was moving into the Cave, as she had no other home.

Artemis wasn't the comforting kind, so she didn't bother going to talk to her in her new room.

_Besides, she probably wants some alone time right now._

"You okay?"

Artemis jumped, startled beyond belief. Turning, she found herself face to face with Red Arrow.

"I'm fine."

Awkward silence filled the air between them.

"I, uh, see that your arm's healed now." Artemis tried to make conversation.

"Yeah." He seemed extremely uncomfortable.

"Wanna go hit the training room to see if you can still shoot an arrow?" Artemis suggested weakly.

Red Arrow smirked, "Of course."

* * *

><p>"Happy?" Klarion chuckled.<p>

"Oui, mon ami. Your distraction, though a bit extreme, was effective. Amid your trademarked chaos, no one will notice the absence of our prize." The Brain answered.

Sportsmaster and the Riddler stepped forward as he spoke to open a case.

"It is fortunate that both the **children **and the **adults **were distracted, non?"

The Riddler grinned and Sportsmaster nodded.

"Otherwise, we would not have the Fata Mundi dagger in our hands as well."

Mirage stepped from the shadows, opening her own briefcase to reveal the gleaming weapon.

**Okay, so that's basically the **_Buried Secrets _**version of **_Misplaced_**. I generally skipped the battle scene, because it is practically the same as the real episode. **

**I apologize if it seems rushed at the end (though I DID actually rush).**

**The reason that I had Artemis just discover Red Arrow's identity is because I seriously doubted he would have given it to her (because he STILL believes that she could be the mole). She manages to earn some of his respect, though. **

**Artemis is part Vietnamese, so I figured, why WOULDN'T she wear an ao dai (Vietnamese dress) to the gala? Confession time: I'm a RoyArtemis fan, so I just HAD to sneak the dancing scene in. But there are no guarantees that that would even be a couple in this story. (Just 'cuz I wanna keep you WallArt fans still interested).**

**I'd just thought I'd let you know that the League does NOT know the Fata Mundi Dagger was stolen. They thought that it was already seen off to the more secure location. And a dagger DID make it there. One of the daggers is an imitation. The question is: which?**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	7. Heartless

**Hello! I knew this sort of took a long time, but I was kind of busy. No matter; spring break started, so I'll have plenty of time to give you more chapters. **

**I'd like to thank Little Karma and nequam-tenshi for sending in an OC. And as usual, MidnightRoulette, batman-defeats-all, Jedi Ani Unduli, and candi711 have my gratitude for reviewing.**

**As it is now April, those of you who have already submitted an OC may submit another one. If you ever change your mind, private message me or submit another review under anonymous review with your username typed in. Again, I emphasize the need for MALE superheroes and FEMALE villains.**

**Here's what I have so far:**

**Villains: Stake**

**Blast**

**Lilac**

**Midnight Prowler**

**Heroes: Sin**

**Jeta**

**Halfte**

**Insight**

**Night Bird**

**Gentil**

**This chapter is the **_Buried Secrets_** version of **_Coldhearted_**.**

**Warning(s): Characters for the most part of OOC, and there is profanity in some parts of the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Young Justice.**

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 11, 14:36 EDT_

_Recognized. Artemis B07._

"Artemis!" M'gann flew to her eagerly. "You're here!"

Artemis noticed that Zatanna hung back in the meanwhile, clearly still upset over her father.

"So it's Wally's sixteenth birthday today?" Artemis looked around the room. So far, it seemed pretty empty of any decorations.

"Yup!" M'gann beamed. "Wally's going to be so surprised when he comes here later!"

"Great. Is there, um, anything I can do to help?" Artemis still felt a tad bit uncomfortable around the Martian. Artemis discovering M'gann and Connor's relationship had put a seriously big dent in their friendship; the Martian seemed blissfully unaware of this, though

"Well, you could help put up these streamers!" M'gann held up reels of orange, purple, and yellow.

"Um, okay then." She took the rolls and M'gann flew back to the kitchen.

_Mount Justice_

_November 11, 14: 45 EDT_

Artemis had been putting up the decorations for quite some time now. Unfortunately, there were some places that she could **not **reach, despite using a ladder.

_Recognized. Red Arrow B06._

She didn't bother turning around. They weren't friends just because they had toned down their rivalry.

"You need help?"

She continued hanging up the streamers, "Nope."

Roy sighed, and ran his hand through his hair.

_He's not walking away…..Why isn't he-_

"So you're here for Wally's birthday?" Artemis asked, attempting conversation.

"Gee, Artemis," Roy said sarcastically, "What do you think?"

She whirled around to give him a snappy comment, forgetting that she was high up on the ladder.

Okay, you know how in those sappy, cheesy romance flicks, the girl always falls and the guy catches her? Well…let's just say that there was no difference for Artemis.

"You alright?" Roy was grinning.

_Why that cocky little….._

Artemis cleared her throat, "You can put me down now."

When her feet finally touched the floor again, Artemis huffed indignantly, "I didn't need your help, you know."

"Hmmm," his smirk grew wider, "That's not what I thought a few moments ago."

Artemis's face became an unsettling shade of red. Instead of saying anything, she turned around again to the ladder.

"Oh no, you don't," Roy grabbed her shoulder.

"Why not?" she hissed.

He pointed at the ladder, "One of the rungs is broken, and the rest looks kind of unstable."

_Damn. He's right. I hate it when he's right._

She looked over at him, "So what are we supposed to do now, _Speedy_?"

Zatanna walked in to make sure Artemis and Red Arrow hadn't killed each other yet.

She was surprised to hear laughter as the two worked together to hang the streamers up. Careful not to interrupt them, Zatanna quietly watched from the corner.

Artemis was notably laughing the loudest as she tossed the roll into the air. As it unraveled, Red Arrow shot an arrow, pinning it against the wall. The rest of the roll severed from the pinned piece and fell back into Artemis's hands.

"Nice shot," Artemis smiled, "but I can do better."

She moved towards him, shoving the roll into his hands and picking up her bow.

Red Arrow rolled his eyes but nonetheless, complied.

"Hey," Artemis called out as she readied her arrow, "You don't think that they'll mind that our arrows are in the wall, right?"

Red Arrow shrugged, "Doesn't matter how we do it, as long as we do it."

"It's about time they get along," Zatanna thought as she moved back to the kitchen to help M'gann.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_November 11, 16:20 EDT_

"So Wally's into M'gann?" Roy asked, furrowing his brow.

Artemis rolled her eyes, "No shit, Sherlock."

Roy ignored her last comment, "And M'gann's into Superboy?"

"She's **in** a relationship with Superboy," Artemis corrected somewhat bitterly.

"Awww, is Artemis jealous?" Roy teased.

She folded her arms, "Yeah, right."

For a while, there was silence between them.

"Someone should tell Wally then," Roy finally said.

"I'll tell him," Artemis volunteered.

Roy raised his brow, "You seem a bit eager to break Wally,"

"It's only because it's getting really annoying hearing Wally's lame ass pick-up lines," Artemis retorted.

Roy grinned, "You probably only think that because no one's bothered to use those corny pick-up lines on you."

Artemis's eyes twitched, "Asshole."

The truth was, only one person used pick-up lines on her: Cameron, aka Icicle Jr. Of course, that had been before he realized that it was her he was looking at. It could have been because she seemed too tough and would likely slug you for making comments like those, but still…

_Well_, Artemis decided _Might as well break it to Wally right now._

Before she left, Roy called out, "Artemis?"

"Yeah?" She turned towards him.

He smirked, "Every time I see you, my eyes break."

Artemis blinked rapidly. _Did he just use a pick-up line on me?_

He continued, "I swear, every single time, my eyes burn."

Every good feeling evaporated. Artemis flashed him her middle finger before walking away.

She swore she heard his laughter ring out above the din of the room.

* * *

><p><em>Montana {Bio Ship}<em>

_November 11, 17:09 EDT_

Tension was in the air. Awkwardness, too.

Zatanna was upset over her father, and would not speak unless prompted to.

Artemis only silently stared out the window, which meant that conversation was left up to the Martian.

"So," M'gann started from the pilot's seat.

"Hmmm?" Artemis made the mistake of actually looking at the Martian.

"Artemis," M'gann said brightly, "I'm so glad you're back on the Team."

"I am?" Artemis was confused.

"Well, you're here, aren't you?" M'gann responded.

"I-" Artemis began, but then she stopped. What if M'gann was right? Batman hadn't officially let her back on the Team, but he hadn't officially kicked her out either.

Zatanna decided to jump into the conversation, "Is anyone else excited that we're working with the League?"

M'gann beamed, "Yeah! I bet we're really earning their respect. It's too bad that Wally can't join us."

Artemis snorted, "Are you kidding? He gets his own solo mission saving the life of a little girl. Police across the country are helping."

"Oh, I just remembered something," Zatanna snapped her fingers.

"What?" Both Artemis and M'gann turned towards her inquisitively.

"I've been meaning to ask you something Artemis," Zatanna smiled, "What's going on between you and Red Arrow?"

"You and Red Arrow are together?" An ecstatic M'gann clapped her hands together.

"N-no," Artemis spluttered, "It's nothing like that, trust me."

"Oh," M'gann's happy disposition faded.

Zatanna, in the meanwhile, raised her eyebrow skeptically, "Really? That's not what I thought earlier."

"Artemis," M'gann's voice rang out through Artemis's mind. She was contacting her telepathically.

Artemis cast a glance at Zatanna to see if she was linked too (though she didn't know why she checked. The three were the only ones in the bio ship). Zatanna was looking back out at the window.

"You can tell me anything," M'gann smiled as her thoughts were broadcasted to Artemis.

"Okay," Artemis replied evenly in her head, "What's going on between **you and Superboy**, then?"

M'gann's green cheeks grew a rosy pink, but she didn't say anything.

"I have something to tell you guys," M'gann confessed out loud a few minutes later.

Both turned to her, waiting.

"I-I've been secretly dating Conner. We've been together ever since our undercover mission at Belle Reve,"

"I know," Artemis said quietly.

Zatanna chimed in, "We all did."

M'gann was surprised, "H-how?"

"You were kind of obvious," Zatanna told her gently.

M'gann blinked, "But Wally still hits on me. It didn't seem like he knew."

Artemis snorted, "That's because he's a dumb, oblivious idiot."

"But Artemis told him earlier, so he won't be bothering you anymore," Zatanna added.

M'gann shook her head, "Wow."

Then something occurred to her.

"Artemis," she said meekly, "you aren't angry, are you?"

Artemis shrugged, "I dunno. I was…kinda mad at first. Not because I was jealous, but because you didn't bother telling me."

M'gann ducked her head in shame, "I'm sorry. I never meant to upset you, it's just-"

"It's okay," Artemis interrupted. Now she felt guilty. It wasn't like the Martian tried to hide her relationship from her. Artemis had her own secrets too; ones that she never told M'gann either.

M'gann shook her head, "I've been so wrapped up in my relationship with Conner and being part of the Bumblebees that I haven't really been talking to you guys."

"Well, nothing new has happened in my life," Zatanna offered.

"Really?" Artemis asked incredulous, "**Nothing** between you and Robin?"

"Well…." Zatanna started. Then she frowned, "Hey! What about you and Red Arrow?"

_Okay, Artemis, do what those Gotham Academy girls do when they're disinterested: look at your nails._

"I already told you: nothing," as she pretended to examine her nails.

"C'mon," Zatanna leaned forward, "you don't honestly expect us to fall for that, do you?"

M'gann smiled, "I can always read her mind to find out, Zatanna."

"Ohh," Zatanna's eyes sparkled with mischief, "and I recently learned a persuasion spell, M'gann."

"No fair," Artemis muttered as she shifted away from them (as **if **that'd help her). What could she do to them? Shoot them with magical arrows that forced them to tell the truth?

_Actually, that'd be pretty cool_.

Artemis's eyes narrowed, "M'gann!"

_Sorry!_

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_November 12, 3:18 EDT_

They'd done it. Both the Team and the Justice League had taken down all five of the ice fortresses together. As Artemis guessed, Wally's mission had more than meets the eye. The little girl Wally saved turned out to be the young Queen Perdita of Vlatava. A sudden scream brought her out of her somewhat celebratory thoughts.

She quickly pushed her room's window up and clambered onto the fire escape.

A small girl continued to scream as a big thug swung his fist into her repeatedly.

"Shut up, ya little squirt!" he grunted.

The little girl fell, and her cries began to get muffled in her throat.

_How could __**no one **__hear her?_

Artemis didn't have enough time to change or grab her bow.

The thug started to kick her roughly in the sides.

_The girl's going to die if I don't do something soon. She's so petite and fragile and that brute is like two times Dad's size._

"Please! Someone help me!" the girl cried weakly as she attempted to scramble upwards.

"SHUT THE HELL UP!" he roared as he grabbed her neck roughly. He was going to choke her if Artemis didn't come in quickly.

At this Artemis jumped in, swiftly knocking the man off to the side.

The man, though surprised, got up quickly, yelling, "This is family business, ya hear?"

The little girl besides her gasped for breath in the meanwhile, struggling to control her breathing.

"You're** her** father?" Artemis's eyes narrowed.

God, the last thing she needed was a repeat of her own life. Only difference, though, was that her father, no matter how much of a douchebag he was, would **never **physically abuse his children.

"Yes," he jeered, "Is that enough for you, ya little busybody?"

Artemis low kicked him, knocking him back down to the ground with a grunt.

Apparently that knocked him unconscious.

"Assholes like you don't deserve to even live," Artemis spat out, kicking him in the side for a good measure.

Artemis turned towards the little girl. She looked to be about nine or ten. Her clothes were tattered and grimy, and bruises were all over her body. There were gashes as well, some dried up, but several still gushing out blood. Her black hair looked like it had been pulled roughly, and the way she stood suggested that she sprained her right ankle.

"W-who are you?" the girl trembled and swayed, evidently fatigued.

Artemis stooped down to her level, "My name's Artemis, and I'm going to help you."

The girl's eyes widened, "Daddy always said that I was too dumb to meet a real goddess."

"Oh no," Artemis began, "I'm not a-"

She was cut off by the girl falling onto her.

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_November 12, 7:43 EDT_

"Mom?" Artemis called out as she entered her apartment.

"Artemis!" Paula scolded as she wheeled herself towards the door, "Why did you leave the apartment?"

"It's because of her," she gestured to the little girl limping in behind her.

Paula's eyes widened, "What happened?"

"She was being beaten up by her own father," Artemis replied quietly, "I took her to the hospital."

"The hospital let you check her out?" Paula demanded.

"No," Artemis confessed, "but she was fine. The doctor even said so. They just wanted to send her off to the orphanage."

"And you couldn't have it, could you?" Paula finished.

"Please don't get mad at her, Hera!" the girl cried out.

"Hera?" Paula seemed amused.

"She thinks that we're Greek goddesses," Artemis explained.

"And you don't **think **she should remain in the hospital because of that?"

"Look at her!" Artemis shouted, "She **needs** me."

"There's an extra bed in your room, Artemis," Paula said finally, "and I'm sure that I have some of your old clothes that could fit her."

"Thanks, Mom!" Artemis beamed as she hugged her.

"Okay, okay," Paula pushed Artemis off of her.

Paula began to wheel herself down the hallway. "Come along now-" she hesitated.

"Alice," the girl whispered, "my name's Alice."

* * *

><p>"I don't get it," Artemis huffed to Paula.<p>

"Get what?" Paula seemed mystified.

"How anyone could be so heartless to their own daughter."

"Oh, Artemis," Paula murmured to herself, "You of all people should know what that feels like."

* * *

><p><strong>The chapter was named "Heartless" to match with "Coldhearted". The reason for this is the whole last part on Alice. Her name came out of inspiration from the <strong>_Alice in Wonderland _**poster in Artemis's room. **

**The pick-up line that Roy used? I made it up, which would explain why it sucked. (I'm not good at that kind of stuff)**

**Keep in mind that the Team does not know of Roy and Artemis's mission to track down Mirage, and therefore, are unaware that Roy and Artemis put aside their rivalry.**

**Okay, I thought there were some gaps in **_Coldhearted_** that I SHOULD have been filled.**

**Artemis is pretty confrontational, so I was wondering why the show never showed her talking to M'gann about her relationship with Conner. I mean, I know that their friendship was kind of ruined, but Artemis probably would have asked her anyway.**

**Roy is friends with Wally. I know he doesn't want to join the Team as of yet, but who exactly turns down a birthday party of a friend? Roy SO should have been at Wally's party.**

**Just a question, though. How many of you thought that when Roy and Artemis were going to hang up the streamers, Artemis was going to sit on Roy's shoulders to do it?**

**I know what I put instead was kinda weird, but I thought that the Arrow clan might go a bit overboard with the arrows, and Artemis and Roy aren't quite close yet.**

**For those who have already seen **_Insecurity_**, I know it is a HUGE gap from where I am at the story. But don't worry, I'll fill it in for the next chapter (I will skip **_Image _**simply because Artemis and Roy are absent in that episode. I'll probably do a flashback of what happened in that time slot for a later chapter, though).**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	8. Uncertainty

**Hey! I'd like to thank all of you who were very prompt in submitting a review to the last chapter.**

**MyLittleAngelxxx, pathtales, batman-defeats-all, arbrick, Solaria daughter of Apollo, and HopelessNevermore, GeekyGirl911, and candi711 have my gratitude for reviewing and/or sending in an OC.**

**Oh, and before I forget, I have a poll up on my profile page concerning the story. I know some of you have already found it, but I'd really appreciate it if more of you answered it so I could properly gauge it. **

**Just a reminder, I NEED more VILLAINS. FEMALE villains would be preferable, but it doesn't really matter. Feel free to send in more superheroes, if you really want to.**

**Here's what I have so far:**

**Villains: Stake**

**Blast**

**Lilac**

**Midnight Prowler**

**Shadow**

**MockingJay**

**Heroes: Sin**

**Jeta**

**Halfte**

**Insight**

**Night Bird**

**Shadow Tamer**

**Mystery**

**There's only TWO episodes left of season one. Season two is due to come out at the end of April. I'm afraid that it's most likely that the OC's will have to be in the sequel. (I'm not going to even bother asking if you WANT a sequel, because I feel that I owe it to those of you who took their time to make OC's.)**

**This is the **_Buried Secrets _**Version of **_Insecurity_**.**

**Warning: Characters are OOC for the most part, and profanity is used at certain points.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice, or else the episodes would have come out a lot faster.**

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 2, 20:36 EDT_

"Your ankle's gotten better really fast," Artemis commented to Alice as they headed back to their room.

The girl had been staying with the Crocks, and Artemis constantly urged her mother to adopt Alice; she could be company to Paula whenever Artemis was out on her "extracurriculars". Not to mention, Alice already had practically become part of the family.

"Yeah," Alice beamed, "and soon I won't need help walking around anymore."

Soon, they reached their room, and Alice gently reclined on the bed. Artemis plopped down on the bed across from her.

"I've been meaning to ask you something, Artemis," Alice looked down, deliberately avoiding looking at Artemis.

"And what would that be?" Artemis leaned forward.

"W-what are the 'extracurricular activities' that you and Mom always talk about?"

"Umm…" Artemis wasn't sure how to answer this. Alice was still in the dark about the Team and what Artemis **really **did in the night.

Alice seemed embarrassed for asking such a question, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"No! I mean, that's okay," Artemis fumbled. Alice was naïve and trusting and would listen to anything Artemis had to say. People like that always deserved the truth…unfortunately, it was best if Alice didn't know about it.

"It's like training," Artemis lied, "Me and some kids from school gather to, um, train for the Olympics."

Upon Alice's confused look, Artemis rushed to explain, "Not real Olympics. It's…..kinda like the Olympics in the way that we do the events. We gather with other teams and compete every year."

"So what do **you** do on your team?" Alice asked.

_Finally. A part where the truth actually fits._

"I'm the archer on the team." Artemis actually smiled with pride.

"Oh," Alice was clearly fascinated. "That figures. What do your other teammates do?"

"Well," Artemis listed them off, "Wally runs marathons, Conner does uh, weight lifting, one guy does acrobatics, and another swims competitively."

"You're the only girl?" Alice was incredulous, but believed what had been told to her previously. People always tended to believe lies when you added details.

"No," Artemis frowned, "of course not. There are other girls, they're just….." She trailed off. She had no idea what M'gann and Zatanna would fall under.

"It's okay," Alice cut in, smiling. "I was just curious."

They sat there in silence for a few moments.

"Hey, Alice?" Artemis finally voiced.

"Hm?" the girl looked up.

Artemis wrinkled her nose in confusion, "Just how old **are **you? I thought you were nine or ten years old, or something."

Alice shrugged, "I've never really celebrated my birthday, so I don't really know. I'm eleven or twelve, maybe?"

It was odd. Artemis had been busy lately, but she had just realized that Alice looked….older. Almost as if she had aged into a young teenager.

Alice's brown eyes still held its innocence, but it seemed as if her face had matured and her body had lengthened. She didn't remember Alice being that tall.

"Is there something wrong?" Alice asked, clearly concerned. Artemis must have been staring at her for too long.

"No," she shook her head, "Everything's fine. Just go to bed."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 2, 22:15 EDT_

"Artemis?" she whispered, as she turned over to look at her from the bed.

Artemis froze.

_Shit, I hope it's too dark for her to see._

"What are you doing?"

"I'm, uh, just going out for some fresh air out on the fire escape."

There was some silence before she heard an "Oh. Okay."

Artemis had just barely pushed the window open when Alice spoke again.

"I'm having nightmares again. Could you tell me about a good memory with your dad?"

Artemis hesitated. Did she have **any **fondness towards her father?

He **did **emotionally abuse her. But he also taught her how to shoot. And she loved using that bow more than anything. Besides, she wasn't exactly one to talk about his flaws, anyhow.

"I'm sorry," Artemis whispered, "But I'll have to get back to you on that one."

_Yup, I'm going to have to think __**really**__ hard on that one._

* * *

><p>Once Artemis was free on the rooftops, she breathed a sigh of relief.<p>

_Thank God that Alice didn't see me in my hero getup. That would have triggered her suspicions for sure._

"Hey, I'm here." Artemis pressed into her ear com.

"_Finally. Took you long enough."_

"I'm sorry," Artemis huffed sarcastically, "I'm **so **sorry that I have my own life."

"Besides," she added, "This **is** Gotham City. Don't tell me that you had nothing to do."

"_Eh. A few robberies, nothing unusual. The Dynamic Duo seem to take most of the heat. There's a reason why we archers stick to Star City."_

"Okay," Artemis yawned. "If you don't need me, then I'll be heading off to sleep now. I've got to cram my studying for mid-terms tomorrow."

"_Are you frickin' serious? You barely got out here five minutes ago!"_

"Aw, are you going to miss me, _Speedy_?" Artemis teased.

"_Hell no. In your dreams, Blondie."_

"You know," Artemis paused, "You downright **suck **at spying."

"_What the __**hell **__are you talking about, Replacement?"_

She turned towards the silhouette on the rooftop diagonal from her, "I can totally see you, Roy."

"_Whatever. Are we going to patrol or what?"_

"Hmm…..'or what' is looking pretty good right now."

"_Don't you get sassy with me, Blondie."_

Artemis laughed, "Okay, **Grandpa**."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 4, 19:46 EDT_

Almost there. She was almost out of her room. Then she'd be free to zeta-beam to Star City to patrol with Green Arrow.

"Artemis?"

Nearly scared out of her wits, Artemis whirled around.

It was Alice. Somehow, she managed to sneak up on Artemis. Her stealth could actually rival the Boy Wonder's if she trained.

"I thought you were-" Artemis started in defense.

"Asleep?" Alice finished.

This was it. Alice had caught her in a lie. She could either keep on going, or she could just tell her the truth.

Alice smiled in the dark, "Are you sneaking off to a late-night practice with your Olympic friends?"

Of course. Alice would have obviously spotted the bow and the quiver slung over her back. But she must have not spotted her costume.

"Actually, yeah."

"Cool!" Alice beamed, "Could I come with you? To watch, I mean. I've always wanted to see you do archery."

"No! I mean, yeah, you can watch me shoot an arrow sometime, but you can't come to practice. We've got, uh, strict rules on no outsiders."

"Are you lying to me? Please tell me the truth." Alice looked at her with somewhat sad and disappointed eyes.

"Of course I'm telling you the truth!" Indignation entered Artemis. The last part had been completely, 100% **true**.

"I'm sorry," Alice apologized quickly. "I heard Mom wondering out loud if you possibly liked a guy. She said something about you being really happy lately. I thought that maybe you were sneaking out to see this guy."

Seeing Artemis's WTF face, Alice tried to take back what she had said. "Never mind."

Alice actually began to push her to the window. The very window that Artemis had been trying to exit from before Alice confronted her. "Forget what I said. Go to your practice."

* * *

><p><em>Star City<em>

_December 4, 22:06 EDT_

"You been watching long?" Green Arrow turned towards him.

"Long enough to see that she's definitely improving." At this point, it was all he could say. Trashing Artemis to their mentor would be totally uncalled for. Especially when there wasn't exactly anything to trash.

Still, jealousy entered his heart when he watched them work together. That had been **his **job. Roy had been Oliver's partner, and it still stung to know that he had been replaced so quickly and easily.

"What did you want to talk about?" He changed the subject. If they kept on this path, Roy was sure he was going to blow a fuse and end up setting back his relationship with both Oliver **and** Artemis back.

"_All units, armed robbery in progress. Corner of Weisinger and Papp."_

Green Arrow smiled, "For old time's sake?"

It was easy. A few arrows shot from the opposite building of "Save-Big", and the crooks were all ready, dangling unconscious for the police.

As they watched the police arrive, Red Arrow felt nostalgic. A year ago, he would have been in that same shitty medieval costume. treated like a good-for-nothing-sidekick nonetheless, but still somewhat close to Oliver and his other fellow sidekicks.

He'd be lying if he said he didn't feel left out. Even Wally, who had been quick to protest Artemis becoming Green Arrow's protégé, no longer complained. They no longer cared about whether he was on the Team or not. He had waited too long. The Team had probably thrown their hands up long ago saying, "To hell with him! We don't need him!"

The only thing that stopped him from joining every time was his pride. He wasn't going to give in easily. That would have defeated the whole purpose of him storming out of the Hall of Justice. Not to mention, it'd show that he was intimidated by the competition. **Hell **no. As **if** that blonde could outshoot him!

"Congratulations," Green Arrow turned to him, "You've made the cut. By year's end, you'll be in the Justice League."

He stood there stoically, not quite sure how to react. Brush it off lightly with a smirk? Cheer wildly while pumping his fists in the air? Somehow, those things seemed more of a Robin and Kid Flash kind of thing.

" But please," Green Arrow put a hand on Red Arrow's shoulder, "Do me a favor. Set a good example and join the team first."

Red Arrow frowned from beneath his domino mask.

_Looks like I'm eating my own words. I've got to join the kiddies' club and play the Justice League's game before I can prove myself._

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 4, 23:54 EDT_

_SLAM!_

Rage, fury, and indignation overcame Artemis.

_Mom had begged, __**begged **__for them to let me join. So now I'm some kind of pity case?_

"Artemis?" Alice sleepily sat up from her bed.

_Shoot. I woke her up._

"Sorry." Artemis plopped down on her own bed, "I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's fine," Alice rubbed her eyes, "eight hours of sleep is overrated anyway."

Angrily, Artemis threw herself against her pillow, not even bothering to change to her pajamas.

"Did you get into a fight with Mom?" Alice asked worriedly.

Paula had stayed up late for Artemis and decided to chat with her over warm cups of tea. Alice had been sound asleep still in Artemis's bedroom.

Then, while they were talking, Paula accidentally let it slip that Green Arrow and Batman had visited her in jail. Of course, Artemis demanded to know what happened, and Paula had said "I already lost one daughter. I couldn't bear to lose another so I begged them to help keep you on the straight and narrow."

Well, that's not something you should mention to Artemis; her temper flared and she stormed off.

"Well," Artemis huffed, "I just found out that Mom had practically **pleaded **for the, um, coaches of my Olympics team to help me before I had joined."

"Oh." Alice whispered, "That bites."

"Tell me about it." Artemis growled.

Alice crossed over in the dark and reached out to put a reassuring hand on Artemis's shoulder, "I'm sure your skills got you onto the team. Your team sounds serious enough that they don't take pity cases and people below their expectations."

Artemis relaxed, "You're right."

"Besides," Alice added, "If they didn't treat you that way before, it's not like it's going to change **just **because you found out about Mom talking to them."

"Thanks, Ally," Artemis smiled and hugged the girl. Alice was officially **not **a child; she had stopped looking like one and certainly didn't act like one.

"Ally?" Alice blinked, "No one's ever given me a nickname before."

"Well now you've got one. You're part of the family." Artemis ruffled Alice's hair affectionately.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_December 5, 17:04 EDT_

_Recognized. Artemis B07._

"Artemis!" Green Arrow smiled, "Just in time. Look who's agreed to join the Team!"

At that moment, Red Arrow turned around.

_Great. Just great. __**Now **__he decides to join._

"Finally!" Wally pumped his fist in the air. The others all around him grinned.

"Sure," Artemis sarcastically commented, "the Team's needed a **real **archer."

Red Arrow raised his eyebrow behind his domino mask.

Artemis felt like snorting.

_Oh, not __**everybody's**__ overjoyed with you joining, __**Speedy.**_

"Okay," Green Arrow cleared his throat. "The Dynamic Duo is on a case in Gotham, but Batman gave me a heads-up."

He brought up a picture of Sportsmaster.

Both of the archers' eyes widened then narrowed. If it was one thing that they had in common, it was that they both had a score to settle with him.

Green Arrow continued, "Sportsmaster was spotted coming through _Louis Armstrong, New Orleans International Airport_."

"In full costume?" Zatanna was incredulous, "Nervy."

"No," Green Arrow shook his head, "in street clothes. Facial recognition software picked up the ID. Find out what he's up to."

As more pictures of him popped up, Artemis felt a pair of eyes on her. She looked up to see Roy's narrowed eyes looking at her.

_Wow. Déjà vu all over again._

Green Arrow had said that only Kaldur, Wally, and Roy were necessary for the mission.

Artemis caught a glimpse of satisfaction on Roy's face.

Despite not having patched up with Kaldur, Artemis was willing to volunteer for this mission. There was **no way in hell **that she was going to miss the chance to show _Daddy Dearest _how much she improved. That, and to prove that she could totally whip Red Arrow's butt.

"Artemis, are you sure?" Red Arrow asked.

_Does he think I can't handle this? I'll show__** him**__….._

"Absolutely." There. She said it. No hesitation, no fear.

* * *

><p><em>Bio Ship<em>

_December 5, 17: 35 EDT_

"You okay, Replacement?" Red Arrow turned to her.

"Fine. I'm **just** _peachy_." She growled, attempting to focus all her attention on piloting.

They stayed in silence for awhile, waiting for Kaldur and Kid Flash to return from loading the motorcycles in the back.

"Why does Kaldur not trust me, anyways?" Artemis finally asked.

He shrugged in response, "I dunno. He's gone through a lot as both a leader and a person. It might not be anything against you personally."

"Besides," he added, frowning, "Kaldur **does **trust you."

"Yeah," Artemis retorted, "You can really feel the confidence he feels in me based on how angry he was when I accidentally shot you."

"Well, **gee**, Blondie," Red Arrow responded, "You lied to him about your identity. Then you shot his best friend in the arm. Kaldur's no hippie. You just needed to give him time to think and cool off."

Artemis mock gasped, "**Wow**. Someone's managed to find good company behind your cold and snarky attitude."

"Shut up." Red Arrow scowled, "as **if **you don't act that way either."

They both glared at each other in silence before bursting out in laughter.

* * *

><p><em>Orleans Parish<em>

_December 5, 21:27 EDT _

"_He's stopped. Hold your positions. I'm going in for a closer look."_

Artemis frowned from the bio ship.

_He's going to accidentally alert Sportsmaster with his horrible spying skills. And why does __**he **__get to go closer, anyway? You know what? Screw it. I'm going in too._

Artemis had just barely hid behind a tree when a low purr came out behind her.

"Hey **sis**," Cheshire grinned from the treetops, "Long time no reveal who you **really** are to all your friends."

Cheshire dropped down from the treetops with her sword at the same time that Artemis shot an arrow.

She deflected the arrow easily with her sword and swung at Artemis's bow. Artemis used her bow to hold Cheshire off long enough to low kick her away.

"Nice," Cheshire purred, "Canary teach you that?"

Artemis instinctively reloaded and aimed an arrow at her sister.

Cheshire smirked, "Bet you run out of arrows before **I **run out of sword. Unless, you plan on breaking out the pointy ones to use against your **own sister**."

"Why shouldn't I?" Artemis demanded, "You're working with **Sportsmaster**!"

She had thought that since Jade had fled to escape Dad, they'd have some unspoken rule to never team up with him. But Artemis should've known. There was a reason why Jade became a member of the League of Shadows.

_Looks like we're a family full of liars._

"Sorry," Cheshire's voice was dripped with sarcasm and viciousness, "Just because I know all of **your **secrets, doesn't mean I tell you mine."

At that moment, an arrow was shot and a net came out, effectively pinning Cheshire to a tree.

But it wasn't Artemis's arrow….

"Why, Arrow," Cheshire flirted, "If you wanted another date, you only had to ask."

Artemis whirled around to look at him in shock. His expression was unreadable behind those sunglasses.

"You two are **dating**?" was all that came out of Artemis's mouth.

_What the hell? Why do __**I **__care? They're two people who aren't exactly on my favorite people list._

"**What**? No!" Red Arrow denied.

"Why deny the attraction? After all, Arrow, **you're here**."

Artemis turned back and forth between them, unsure.

"And you had the **nerve **to accuse **me **of not shooting straight!" Artemis cried out angrily at him.

Cheshire grinned as she suddenly cut herself out of the net, "Oh my. It seems we've got a love triangle here. Only, little archer girl is the **third wheel**."

Sportsmaster sped off in his boat. Red Arrow could only look after him in horror.

Cheshire managed to tackle him in his distraction.

"Oh, too bad Lover Boy." She leaned in.

Artemis gaped in shock. Then fury set in.

"Get. the. **hell**. off. of . him," Artemis growled as she shoved Cheshire over.

"Oooh, Someone getting a little bit **jealous**," Cheshire teased as she tossed and caught her sai in a way that Artemis knew was to show off.

Artemis readied an arrow to shoot, when a sudden blur knocked Cheshire to the ground.

"Sweet!" Kid Flash whooped as he caught the weapon, "A souvenir!"

"Artemis!" Red Arrow shouted, "Tracer arrow on Sportsmaster now!"

She whirled around and readied a different arrow. Too late. He was out of her range.

"He's out of range," she confessed.

"**Move**," Red Arrow ordered as he came towards her for the shot. His arrow hit, and Artemis narrowed her eyes in disappointment of herself.

_**I **__should have made that shot. Why couldn't I? Why did I have to choke?_

"Wait. You're **abandoning**?" Artemis yelled after Red Arrow as he jumped onto his ski jet.

"I'm **prioritizing**." He snapped over his shoulder.

"Oh, **that's **got to sting." Cheshire purred, "He makes the shot that you were afraid to even try."

_Wow. What a family we are. __**Why **__did I want her to stay when I was eight years old again?_

* * *

><p><em>Orleans Parish<em>

_December 5, 21:58 EDT_

"We threw the fight as ordered. **After **Artemis planted the tracer." Wally was saying to Kaldur and Red Arrow as Artemis walked into the clearing.

"Cheshire's heading north," Artemis declared, holding up the PDA linked up to her tracers.

"But Sportsmaster was heading **south**," Red Arrow growled, "Kind of like this mission."

_Ouch. That actually kind of stung._

"Maybe he'll double back. Maybe **she **will," Artemis argued, trying to keep her cool.

"Sportsmaster acquired a case. We need to learn what it contained. If you had stayed aboard the bio ship-" Kaldur began.

Artemis cut him off, "I saw Cheshire sneaking up on **him**." She pointed at Red Arrow accusingly.

"Then you **radio **a warning." Red Arrow was obviously pissed off with her.

"And if she found you by hacking our frequency?" Artemis demanded.

"It is true," Kaldur intervened, "We **have **depended on M'gann's telepathy over our radios."

Artemis smiled in gratitude at him.

_Okay, maybe Roy was right. Kaldur __**doesn't **__hate me or distrust me._

It was such an opposite of the last mission she had been on with Kaldur.

"So let's stop looking to place blame, and start looking for Cheshire!" Wally declared.

* * *

><p><em>New Orleans<em>

_December 5, 22:18 EDT_

Artemis pushed the window of the warehouse open and dropped down on the floor. She was about to ready an arrow when one of her tracker slid across into her boot.

Cheshire came out of the shadows, "Pulled it off of my sword about a minute after you put it there."

Artemis aimed an arrow at her sister without hesitation.

"Thought you might want it back," Cheshire grinned, "since it goes so nicely with the one that **Red Arrow **gave **you**."

Artemis almost reeled back in shock at the red tracer on her quiver.

_He-he couldn't have. I-I thought I proved myself to him._

"Someone on your team doesn't trust you," Cheshire sang mockingly as she held out a screen.

Artemis narrowed her eyes. Roy was out there scouting for a way into the warehouse.

_So he really did put a tracer on me. He didn't trust me and followed me here._

"Oh, but that's not all," Cheshire smiled, "Daddy doesn't exactly approve of him either."

She zoomed in 135% to show Sportsmaster above him, ready to send a spear straight through Red Arrow's head.

Artemis's eyes widened before she swiftly sent an explosive arrow at the very door that Red Arrow was trying to get in through on the other side.

Artemis could tell that both she and Jade were relieved when Red Arrow was knocked backwards, and the spear narrowly avoided him. But that didn't mean that they had formed a pact of any kind, so they started to swing at each other.

Cheshire loomed over her menacingly with her sword when an arrow exploded near Cheshire's arm, knocking her back.

"_Arrow to Aqualad. Located Cheshire and Sportsmaster. Rendezvous at my coordinates."_

"_Acknowledged. Sending Kid ahead." Kaldur responded. _

Soon Artemis and Red Arrow were back to back, fighting both Cheshire and Sportsmaster.

"So you're pretty much allergic to radioing a warning?" Red Arrow snapped, referring to her blowing up the door a few moments ago.

"Artemis to Arrow. **Look out**." Artemis mocked.

It wasn't long before they were separated, though, and fighting the same battle again.

Kid Flash came in suddenly, knocking Cheshire to the side.

"Aqualad and I found the tracer on a caboose," Kid Flash exclaimed to her, "And I don't mean Cheshire's."

"She must have ditched it." Artemis lied.

"Yeah," KF agreed, "I figured."

Then he realized something, "Wait. Then how did you and Red end up here?"

Luckily, they were interrupted by a red flash.

"GO!" he shouted to her as Cheshire tackled him.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_December 6, 03:21 EDT_

"Let me be clear," Kaldur narrowed his eyes in disappointment, "We failed. And we have learned **nothing **of their plans."

"**Gee**," Red Arrow commented sarcastically, "I wonder **why**."

"Hey!" Artemis pointed at him defensively, "Who found out that Sportsmaster was working for Brain, Klarion, and Ivo?"

"Yeah, great intel," Red Arrow argued, "Except Ivo's been in Belle Reve the **whole time**!"

Wally stared at her in silence and disappointment. Red Arrow had been quick to fill him and Kaldur in on Artemis and the tracers.

"So how are you going to betray us next time?" Red Arrow shouted at her angrily.

"Enough." Kaldur put his hand on Red Arrow's shoulder to prevent another fight. "If making a mistake was a betrayal, we'd **all **be traitors."

Kaldur went off to report to Batman after commanding the others to get some sleep.

"Why?" Artemis asked when they were alone. What was with his sudden distrust of her?

"You're not who you say you are," Red Arrow snorted, as if that was the most obvious answer.

"If you didn't trust me at all, why did you ask **me **to help you track down Mirage? Why not Kaldur, Wally, or Robin?" Artemis demanded.

Red Arrow shrugged but his eyes remained hard, "I wanted to keep an eye on you. You know what they say, 'Keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer,' And you're the prime suspect for the mole on the Team."

"So you used me," Artemis choked out. All of those conversations they had, they were all tests for him to see what kind of a monster she was.

_I trusted __**you**__. But I guess you're nothing but a sick bastard. I regret letting you into my home and letting you see my mom! I regret wearing a frickin' __**dress **__for you! _

Nothing could stop the tears threatening to spill out from her eyes. She was shocked, hurt, and betrayed.

She whirled around quickly to exit before he could see.

"Not so fast," he reached out to grab her by the shoulders. "This isn't over, not by a long shot."

Artemis roughly wrenched her shoulder out of his grip, "It is if **I** say so."

* * *

><p><em>Recognized. Artemis B07.<em>

The blonde archer was gone just like that.

_Damn._

Roy massaged his temples. Why had he suddenly exploded like that? All of a sudden, as soon as he saw Sportsmaster, he felt this uncontrollable rage. Of course, he just **had **to choose to let it all out on Artemis.

True, she had done some really stupid things tonight, but so had he in his lifetime.

_I can't believe I'm saying this…..but I've got to apologize._

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 6, 3:04 EDT_

"Artemis?" Paula wheeled herself behind her daughter, "Is everything-"

"Fine, Mom. " Artemis cut in, attempting to wipe away tears without her mother noticing.

When she opened the door, she was shocked to see her **father **on her bed. The window was opened, and Alice was still asleep on the other bed.

"Shhh!" Lawrence Crock held a finger up to his lips, "Wouldn't want to upset your mother or wake up the little girl."

"What," Artemis hissed, "Are you doing here?"

"Just curious to see how your little team took their defeat." He took off his mask. "Blamed you, didn't they?"

Artemis visibly stiffened.

"Will they keep you around now that Red Arrow's joined up?" he continued, getting up from the bed. "And what if they learn the truth about the family ties that you've worked **so **hard to hide?"

"Will they **ever **trust you again?" he questioned with a smirk on his face as Artemis looked away.

"Thanks for the pep talk, **Dad**. We should have these family reunions more often," Artemis responded sarcastically.

"You tried, baby girl. You can fight Jade, you can even fight me. But you can't fight who. you. are." He poked her in the chest.

"Time to switch sides, Artemis. You'll **never** be one of them. You belong with **us**." He watched in satisfaction as Artemis sighed, clearly conflicted.

A sudden knock brought them to attention.

"Artemis?" Paula called.

"Looks like I'll have to go, baby girl. See you next pep talk," he climbed out the window, closing it behind him.

Artemis watched him go before opening the door. "Yeah, Mom?"

Paula frowned, "Did something happen with that arrow boy?"

"No. Why?" Artemis lied as she froze in shock. Maybe that thing about mothers having ESP was true.

"Well," Paula smiled wryly, "He **did **come by a few moments ago saying that he had to talk to you about something."

"**What**?" Artemis's jaw dropped. How dare he!

"Don't worry. I sent him off. Sorry sight he was." Paula shook her head. "Go to sleep, sweetheart."

With that, she wheeled herself out.

* * *

><p>Artemis had just settled into bed when a soft whisper rang out.<p>

"Yeah, Alice?" Artemis turned to her.

"I heard you sniffling as if you were crying," Alice told her. "Are you alright?"

_Well, telling her the simplified version wouldn't hurt._

Artemis sighed, "My team got another archer today."

"The more, the merrier, right?" Alice asked naively.

"No," Artemis shook her head, "He's better than me, and I'm afraid that he's …"

"Taking your place?" Alice finished. "Artemis, I'm sure that's not the case. Besides, it's no fun being the replacement."

_Don't __**I**__ know __**that**__._

"But it's not great knowing you could be replaced either. You've got to keep an open mind about these things." Alice continued.

_This is pathetic. I'm taking advice from a girl who looks like- er __**used to **__look like a ten year old._

"The thing is," Artemis said looking down, "Is that he used me to, uh…."

"Get on the team?" Alice supplied.

_Well, that's not true, but I'll just roll with it…._

"Yeah," Artemis nodded.

"Oh." Alice looked up at the ceiling. "I'm not experienced with these kinds of things, but you should try to, um, move on I think?"

Artemis laughed, "That's okay. It's strange asking these things of a person your age anyways."

* * *

><p><em>Blood. Blood was everywhere. The dark crimson stained everything in her sight, and the smell was too much to bear. Worst of all was the dying person in front of her.<em>

"_You've got to find him," he murmured as his chest struggled to heave out what was probably one of his last breaths._

"_No!" she found herself frantically grabbing his hand, clinging on to his every word. "You can't die!"_

_It was as if she was the one dying rather than him._

"_Promise me….." his words were barely audible at that point._

_Her tears poured down from her eyes onto his face._

_He continued, unfazed, "Don't let this haunt you. Find him."_

"_I know," she choked out._

_His eyes began to fix themselves at a certain spot on the ceiling._

_She gently put his hands on her face, "I promise that I'll do everything you ask of me."_

_He smiled, "One more thing,"_

"_Yes?"_

_At that point, he came into a severe coughing fit._

_When it finally subsided, he gasped out, "I'm sure he'll love you as much as I do."_

_Her eyes widened at the confession. He loved her?_

"_I- I love-" she began. But her vision started to blur._

"_Don't cry," his thumb attempted to wipe away her tears. It seemed that it was all he was focusing on at that point._

_She closed her eyes, wishing, __**hoping**__, that this wasn't real. That this confession was happening, but not as the way it was unfolding currently._

_She only opened her eyes again when she felt his hand slip away from hers. _

_He was dead._

"_I love you," she sobbed. Why could she only say that when he was gone?_

Artemis startled from her bed.

_It wasn't real. It was all just a dream. A __**really**__ bad dream._

* * *

><p>But she couldn't deny that she was shaken. All of the late night counsel sessions with Artemis must have taken a toll on Alice, because she didn't wake up this time.<p>

The whole seemed freakishly real. Everything. Down to the emotions and the senses.

Tears silently streamed out of her eyes as she curled herself into a ball and started rocking herself back and forth.

The worst part? A fraction of her was saddened by the fact that it wasn't reality. The part that wanted him to **love **her.

* * *

><p><strong>Whew! That chapter took a long time to write. I'm kind of on a deadline, so I apologize if this seemed rushed. Feel free to PM me or send me a review about grammatical mistakes, because I didn't even bother so much as glancing over it. <strong>

**First thing's first. Roy, well, in nice terms, SUCKS at stealth and subtlety. **

**I've realized that Kaldur really hasn't been in Buried Secrets lately (although it probably has to do with the fact that he's barely in the episodes anymore.). **

**I know that the RoyArt fans probably either hate my guts or love me to bits and pieces right now, but I HAD to make Roy the jerk he is in the episodes in order to pave way to **_Performance_**. **

**I put Alice a little bit more to give Artemis more of a confidence boost and put an emphasis on their new sisterly relationship. Not to mention, I thought it'd be fun to put someone unaware of Artemis's activities in the same household. Honestly, Artemis isn't exactly the best liar. Some of you have mentioned an interest in Alice. Well, I'll tell you right now that the really good stuff on her won't come until the sequel, but pay attention to what Artemis says about her.**

**Again, there WILL be a sequel and a chapter flashbacking to the time in between the chapters (because YJ totally skips a LOT in between episodes)**

**The last part was, yes, a dream. But it's a bit of foreshadowing, if you catch my drift. ;)**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	9. Open Mind, Open Heart

**Hello! A LOT of you were quick to read and review yesterday's chapter.**

**I'd like to thank Jedi Ani Unduli, BlueBird722, Mikado X Goddess, polarbear1355, batman-defeats-all, Angel of Mysteries, and MyLittleAngelxxx for submitting reviews and/or sending in OC's. Sadly, I nearly have enough OC's. I can only accept TWO more villains. First two people to send one in gets to be in.**

**Here's what I have so far:**

**Villains: Stake**

** Blast**

** Lilac**

** Midnight Prowler**

** Shadow**

** MockingJay**

** Black Rose**

**Heroes: Sin**

** Jeta**

** Halfte**

** Insight**

** Night Bird**

** Shadow Tamer**

** Mystery**

**Gentil**

** Morph**

**P.S. If anything of this is wrong, you MUST private message me to let me know (or leave it in this chapter's review).**

_Italics= thoughts, "telepathic communication"/ "radio communication", time stamps, flashbacks_

**Bold= exaggerated words**

**This is the **_Buried Secrets _**version of **_Performance._

**Warning: Characters are most likely OOC, and profanity is used at certain points in the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Young Justice. Last I checked, I wasn't the happiest person in the world.**

* * *

><p><em>Bruges<em>

_December 22, 20:23 CET_

"Great job out there, **Dawn**," Artemis congratulated the Martian.

She merely smiled in response before turning her attention to Superboy's abs.

Artemis rolled her eyes. You would've thought that it'd get old, considering how he frequently ripped his shirt off in rage.

Robin, or "Dan Danger", had nearly scared her and the rest of the crowd to death when he began to plummet down from the trapeze. Luckily, "Dean Danger" (Superboy) threw a barrel that lifted him high enough for Dawn to grab him. He had been not feeling well, and was certainly off his game.

"You okay, Dan?" She turned to the thirteen year old.

He waved her off, "I'll manage."

Before they could continue the conversation, Dane Danger (aka the **asshole **who **still **acted like a, well, asshole) nudged Robin.

"**Was** your slot until you missed that performance in Paris," the ringmaster was saying to two angry acrobats.

"Carlo was sick!" one protested, "He's better now!"

"Plus," 'Carlo' added, "those 'Dangers' are a sham! They **say **they are brothers and sisters. They don't even look alike!"

Jack Haly just brushed them off, "Eh. You just don't like the competition."

"_Sorry," M'gann apologized to them._

Upon introducing themselves to the ringmaster, M'gann had accidentally referred to themselves as brothers and sisters. Personally, it didn't matter to Artemis. It was sweet that she considered the Team her family.

Artemis continued to watch as a man in a suit confronted Haly on thefts occurring while the circus was in town.

"If I prove you are responsible, I **will **shut you down," he threatened.

Robin visibly winced.

_Robin seems to care an awful lot about this circus._

The agent walked over to them, "Faraday, Interpol. New act?"

"Yup," Robin faked a smile, "Just joined the tour."

He nodded, "Probably clears you. But don't get too comfortable. Haly's going **down **for this."

Robin narrowed his eyes and frowned as Faraday walked away.

* * *

><p>"<em>If Interpol's already on this, why are <em>_**we **__bothering?" _Superboy questioned.

"_**Because**__," _Robin seemed a bit pissed off_, "Batman says so. Why? You got something better to do?"_

Superboy shut up at that point.

"_How do we know the thieves will hit here?" _Artemis asked as she examined the building with her binoculars.

"_There __**are **__more obvious targets," _Red Arrow agreed with her.

_Asshole __**agrees**__ with me? Shocking…_

"_And Faraday will have them covered," _Robin wiped his forehead_, "But I've analyzed the tech already stolen, and the pattern suggests that this is the place." _

"_How are you feeling?" _M'gann asked in concern. You'd have to be pretty blind not to see that Robin wasn't the perfect picture of "whelmed".

"_Lousy, actually." _Robin confessed, _"But I'll manage."_

There was brief silence before Superboy reported spotting the thief in the north east quadrant.

"_Now we know why __**Carlo **__missed his performance," _Superboy growled.

"_It could be Carlo, it could be his brother. Keep an open mind." _Robin instructed.

Everybody else dropped down in front of the warehouse.

"If only someone gave **Arrow** that piece of advice beforehand," she muttered before jumping down too.

* * *

><p>"Caught red-handed!" Robin laughed, "Red-faced too, I'll bet!"<p>

"Acrobatics won't get you out of this," Artemis narrowed her eyes.

If they wrapped this all up, there was a possibility that she could be home in time for her first Christmas Eve with Mom and Alice.

Then, to their surprise, the thief blew fire. **Frickin' balls of fire.**

"Move!" Red Arrow cried out.

He aimed at the thief, only to spot crates stamped with the words "**LIVE AMO"**

"The crates are filled with live amo!" Red Arrow warned.

Artemis could only stare in shock for one moment before scrambling away.

"Hurry the **hell **up!" Red Arrow growled at her over his shoulder.

"Me!" she yelled back indignantly, "You're in my way!"

* * *

><p>They were just barely into a little shelter that Robin had found when the warehouse blew around them.<p>

Superboy's strength especially came in handy when he pushed the debris off of them.

Fire was everywhere, and if she wasn't afraid of it then, she certainly was now.

"That guy is so DEAD!" Superboy raged.

"Superboy, no!" Robin shouted after him, with a limp M'gann resting on his shoulder.

_Oh, right. Martians have a weakness against fire._

"You need to get her out." Robin told the angry Kryptonian.

"He's getting **away**!" He cried out.

_Wow. He's __**such **__a great boyfriend. Where does the Team keep finding these assholes, anyway?_

Then the fury faded from his eyes. "Right."

As Superboy ran off with M'gann in his arms, Robin attempted to send Artemis and Red Arrow after the thief. He collapsed on the floor, panting heavily.

Right now, Artemis could tell you, that the Boy Wonder wasn't exactly looking **wonderful **at the moment.

"Because he matters more than **you**," Artemis sarcastically commented as she grabbed his arm.

"You're still of your gig, Pal," Red Arrow added, putting Robin's arm around his shoulder.

Despite the fire, the warehouse crumbling and burning around them, and the obvious concern for

M'gann and Robin, all Artemis could think about was **his Royal Asshole-ness. **

* * *

><p>"<em>Advanced weapons tech has been stolen from manufacturing planets all throughout Europe," Robin brought up a map, and red marks appeared.<em>

"_Each theft coincides with tour stops made by the Haly Circus. Batman's sending us undercover to catch the thieves." _

"_This clown car have room for one more?" Red Arrow asked as he came up from behind Robin. He was smiling rather pleasantly. _

_Artemis scowled at him. He was __**such **__a faker. She had first hand experience of that._

"_Uh," Robin hesitated, "We've got this covered." _

_Red Arrow's smile quickly faded as he leaned in to say something to Robin._

_M'gann seemed uninterested, but Artemis saw Conner keenly listening in. Probably using his super hearing. Artemis made a note to maybe try to ask Conner about it later._

_Knowing, Roy, though, it probably __**(most likely) **__had to do with the mole on the Team. Honestly, that boy was __**obsessed **__with finding and exposing this "mole". _

"_There is __**no mole**__!" Artemis wanted to shout at him. Did he __**seriously **__believe something that her father had said?_

_Instead, Artemis had settled for a snarky comment. "Yay. Red Arrow's going back home for the holidays."_

_Hey, did you expect Artemis to just __**pass up**__ the chance to mock him? Especially after he revealed his true colors?_

_Red Arrow scowled at her, obviously irritated beyond belief._

_That had to have been the most satisfying part._

* * *

><p><em>Bruges<em>

_December 23, 08:23 CET_

"_So __**two **__thieves, right? The fire breather and one of the acrobats." _Artemis asked. They were back in their sleeping car in the train.

"_Dressed in identical clothes." _M'gann added. She was back into her human form again, and it certainly felt weird looking at her that way.

"_Maybe not just two," _Robin suggested, _"The Paris and Madrid surveillance shows that the thief or thieves have the talent of extreme strength and the ability to tight rope walk."_

"_So the strongman and the clown too," _Roy frowned, _"If the whole circus is involved, Haly __**himself**__ may be the mastermind." _

"_You don't know that!" _Robin defended.

"_But it __**would **__explain Haly's lies about the bed check," _M'gann agreed with Roy.

"I told you to keep an open mind!" Robin shouted angrily at M'gann. He stormed off, slamming the train car's door loudly.

"_Hello, Meghan!" _she slapped her forehead, _"I'll read Haly's mind."_

Roy looked weary, _"I'm not so sure we can trust you to do that without tipping him off."_

"_Or maybe you don't trust her, period." _Superboy cut in, stalking forward to confront Red Arrow. _"I heard you talking to Robin back at the Cave. You're only here to spy on the three of us."_

"_Is that __**true**__?" _Artemis demanded.

"_There's a __**mole**__ on this team. And good reasons to suspect all three of you," _Roy brushed Superboy off and ignored Artemis, _" Both Artemis and Miss Martian have already been caught in lies. __**You **__could be programmed by Cadmus without even knowing."_

"_You __**seriously **__came all this way to check up on us 'possible moles'?" _Artemis yelled. But she already knew the answer. He bothered to spend time with **her** just to see whether she was the mole.

"_Or __**maybe **__I take your head off without even trying." _Superboy growled over her.

_Gee, nice comeback, Supey. I can __**really**__ see what M'gann finds in you._

"_Woah," _M'gann put a hand on Superboy's shoulder to calm him down,_ "Let's all take a time out here, before we do something we regret."_

"_Speak for yourself." _Superboy huffed as he furiously left the room, with M'gann in the tow.

As the door slammed for the second time, Artemis turned to him.

_Do __**not **__yell at him. All that does is bring up more hurt feelings._

Artemis folded her arms, "Should've guessed that that's the real reason you're here."

Roy frowned," There's a-"

"Mole on this team. Yeah, we already heard you, Roy." Artemis finished crossly. "**None **of us are perfect."

Roy scowled, "That's hardly relevant to the conversation!"

"We've all made mistakes, including you! **Especially you**, in fact. The point is, we'd **all **give our lives for this team. So try to keep an open mind." Artemis headed towards the door.

She hesitated for a moment, pondering whether she should stay. But one look back at Roy was all she needed to lightly close the door behind her.

* * *

><p><em>Bruges<em>

_December 23, 09:14 CET_

"Dan?" Artemis reached out for Robin's shoulder, "Are you feeling better?"

After she had left a probably **steaming** Roy, Artemis decided to hunt down Robin. It took a long time, but she finally managed to find him in front of a hall of posters with the circus's old acts.

"The Flying Graysons," Artemis read aloud. That name struck a chord somewhere in her mind.

"Yeah," Robin muttered in a somewhat dejected manner.

"Dick Grayson!" Artemis snapped her fingers. That weird kid who snapped a picture with her on her first day at Gotham!

"What?" Robin seemed startled by her sudden outbursts.

Artemis turned her attention to the poster, "Nothing."

The poster was under **retired **acts. Keyword "retired", as in, no more.

_Poor Dick. I never realized how messed up his life is. He must have been orphaned at such a young age._

At last, she turned towards him, "I'm starting to get cold. Wanna head inside?"

"Sure," Robin sighed, casting one last glance at the posters.

"Hey," Artemis said suddenly, putting her arm over his shoulders, "Once we're done with this mission, you'll be able to relax and feel the **aster**."

Robin smiled slightly at her attempt to cheer him up, "Somehow it just seems **strange** when you say it."

* * *

><p>"Need help?"<p>

Artemis turned, expecting to see Ray, the roustabout. Imagine her surprise when a stoical Roy was there instead.

Artemis wrinkled her nose, "Oh. No thanks. Wouldn't want you to touch the luggage of a **suspected traitor**."

"Wait." Artemis put her hand to her chin, "**Unless **you're trying to find something that would discriminate me in my bags."

He gritted his teeth, " I'm **trying** to be nice."

"Well," Artemis snapped as she hoisted herself into the train, "You're obviously failing, aren't you?"

* * *

><p>"You look better," Artemis commented to Robin.<p>

Robin smiled, his eyes gleaming, "I **feel **better."

He turned to the now bedridden M'gann. "I'm sorry, Dawn. Hope you didn't catch it from me."

"I feel so silly," M'gann groaned, "Who knew that a Martian could be vulnerable to a human virus?"

"Uh…H.G. Wells?" Robin answered. Then he switched topics, "Look, when did you first feel sick?"

"Just before boarding the train. It came on suddenly. I think it was right after Ray touched me." M'gann's eyes began to flutter lazily.

Robin snapped his fingers, "Same with me. Ray rubbed my head for good luck right before it happened."

Superboy scowled, "Guy must be a walking petri dish."

"Yeah," Robin muttered to himself, "Maybe." With that, he ran out the door.

"_Did Robin just get an idea?" _Artemis asked the others.

"_Probably." _Superboy shrugged. _"Let's go." _

M'gann attempted to get up after them, but Artemis firmly pushed her back down. "Oh no, you don't. Not until you get better."

"Thanks, Artemis," M'gann whispered weakly, the corners of her lips turning upwards slightly.

* * *

><p>They came out just in time to hear that Ray had gotten sick with the 24-hour virus.<p>

"We'll check on him," Artemis volunteered. "It's the least we can do." Something about his creepy eyes made her suspicious of him.

"If you insist." Jack responded as "Dane" and "Dean" Danger followed her.

Artemis boldly pushed open the door leading to Ray's car. The room was dark and crowded with shelves and boxes.

"Guess he wasn't **that **sick," Superboy snorted at the empty bed.

Roy began to investigate the crates, so Artemis did too.

Apparently he had found something from his crate.

She smiled as she found a mask.

_Oh, I can __**so **__top that, Speedy._

She interrupted them, "Uh, guys?"

They all turned to her.

She held up the mask in perfect likeness to Ray's face, "I found Ray."

Robin's eyes widened, "Split up! Search the **whole** train!"

* * *

><p>Artemis was near the baggage car when Robin radioed in.<p>

"_Dane. Dean. Diane. Come in."_

Artemis paused, listening diligently.

"_We're chasing someone who's stolen Dawn's whole….act. Her whole shtick if you catch my drift." _

_Wait….. that means that the criminal can now __**fly**__. I better get up to the topside!_

Sure enough, a few minutes later, Superboy reported, _"I've found him. But he's onto me. Exiting the dining car now… He's gone topside!"_

Artemis huffed. She wasn't so sure she could make it across through the top, so she was going to have to go back in and **then **run to the dining car and go back out.

As in she slid back in, she noticed Roy's retreating figure a short distance from her.

_Probably keeping a close eye on me to make sure I don't contact the thief and give him a warning._

Artemis ran as fast as she could, hoping to beat Roy to the dining car.

They actually arrived at the ladder at the same time. Though Artemis was sure that he had slowed down on purpose.

"You first?" Roy asked her.

Artemis rolled her eyes, "Oh, please. Cut it out with the gentleman act, and just get up there already."

"Whatever." Roy shrugged and went up the ladder.

* * *

><p><em>Geneva <em>

_December 24, 00:37 CET_

"We need to lure him out," Robin whispered, "Or at least safely disengage him-"

"RAHHH!" Superboy cried out, charging.

Artemis felt like smacking herself in the forehead. What the **hell **was she thinking when she was interested in him?

"What's **wrong **with -" Red Arrow began angrily.

"Wait!" M'gann held him back. "I have an idea."

Robin raised an eyebrow, "Do tell, Miss M."

"Well," she started, "since he took my powers and abilities, wouldn't he have also took on **my weaknesses **too?"

Artemis nodded, "So we could try to surround him by fire!"

"And the best part is that I **won't **be affected, because I'm still drained of it!" M'gann smiled, "What do you think?"

Red Arrow frowned, "Big risk to take on a theory."

Robin paused, clearly in thought. "Do it," he said at last, "Go!"

M'gann confidently strode out, "So what do you have against Geneva anyway?"

Parasite licked his lips, "Never liked the food. But the menu keeps improving."

As he pulled her towards him, M'gann batted her eyelashes innocently, "I'm just the **appetizer**. Remember?"

At the last moment, she ducked under his arm and low kicked him from the ground. "Here's the main course!"

When he got up, Red Arrow shot him with a foam arrow.

"**Foam**. You think **foam** can hold **me**?" Parasite almost seemed disgusted by the archer's "stupidity"

Artemis watched in horror as Red Arrow's bow was yanked from him, and his body brought hovering away from her.

Red Arrow struggled as Parasite continued, "Or stop me from **crushing** you with a **thought**."

* * *

><p>"<em>No, you and <em>_**I **__are going to Geneva. Without powers, the other would only be slowing us down." Red Arrow grabbed his bow._

"_Hey." Artemis called, "You're not the only one who brought a back-up bow."_

_Red Arrow scowled at her. He clearly didn't want her coming._

_Well, he could just rot in hell. Artemis was going, and that was final._

"_Why the __**hell **__are you so stubborn?" he hissed at her._

_Luckily, Superboy interrupted him by punching the wall. "My powers are back."_

"_How?" M'gann stood up. If he got his powers back, that meant that she'd be the only one left behind._

_Superboy shrugged, "I guess Kryptonians heal faster than humans or Martians do."_

_M'gann folded her arms, "Don't even __**think **__about leaving me behind."_

_Red Arrow's expression of horror was priceless._

* * *

><p>Artemis dropped down from her position. Seeing her, Parasite shot his laser vision.<p>

_That'd be my cue._

She shot the gas arrow and watched as the fire formed around the villain still halfway encased in red foam.

She heard Red Arrow stop struggling and merely looked onwards as he fell onto the ground.

_He could afford to fall down a couple of times. God knows his ego needs it._

"**So **clever," Parasite taunted, "Tricking me into igniting flammable gas. But you forgot Doofus's double dose of invulnerability. Fire. can't. touch. me."

"Unless," M'gann voiced coldly from the side, "You make a meal of my powers, and get my weaknesses as a **side dish**!"

"No!" Parasite screamed as he collapsed on the ground.

"Aw," M'gann's smile seemed oddly sinister, "Poor baby, was it something you **ate**?"

* * *

><p>Red Arrow seemed to be shaking his head off, still messed up from the drop.<p>

_Someone has to be the better person in order for us to move on._

Artemis offered her hand to Red Arrow. Whether he took it as a sign of peace was his choice.

He hesitated, but then began to **smile**. Surprise number two was that he **took **Artemis's hand. Artemis, his **prime **suspect for being the mole.

"Wow," Artemis's lips began to turn upwards, "He daints to touch the hand of a suspected traitor."

As she pulled him up, he stated, "Mind open."

Artemis blinked in shock. Did that mean-?

Red Arrow turned to the approaching Superboy and Miss Martian, "I guess I've never seen you three through the thick of it. Superboy's a hothead, but I know that I'm not the one to talk. You could have each betrayed us, yet you didn't. I'm sorry I doubted everyone."

He paused dramatically for a second.

Artemis could swear that the next sentence had to be one of the greatest things **ever **to spew out of Roy's mouth.

"There is no mole."

* * *

><p><em>Geneva<em>

_December 24,_ 02:15 CET

"Artemis."

Artemis turned towards Roy, "Yeah?"

He rubbed his neck somewhat sheepishly, "I'm sorry in particular for accusing you time and time again of disloyalty to the Team."

Artemis briefly looked up to the sky. Were pigs flying or something?

Roy cleared his throat, "And you should know….you're not….."

"Not what?" Artemis raised an eyebrow.

"You're pretty good company, replacement." Roy confessed. "I may have started hanging out with you solely to spy on you, but… I'd be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy those patrols or conversations we had."

Artemis smiled as she lightly punched him in the shoulder, "And I guess you're not so bad yourself, Arrow."

"But," Artemis frowned, "Don't think for even a **moment **that you're going to get off scotch- free for using me."

Roy laughed, "I didn't count on that for even a second."

* * *

><p><strong>I skipped a LOT of parts from <strong>_Performance. _**If I get any requests or complaints concerning the length of the chapter, I WILL go back and add more through the switch out feature (so it may not alert you if I do). I also rushed through this, so feel free to give me any grammatical corrections.**

**Roy manages to redeem himself, merely because that's what the episode calls for. It kind of seems unrealistic on my part for Roy and Artemis to make up so fast, but, eh, I'll put a chapter on flashbacks about that later on. **

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	10. One Step Closer to a New Beginning

**Hey! I know that I've put up the past few chapters pretty quickly, but, as you noticed, it's been awhile since the last chapter. I apologize. My life's just been kinda….hectic. Summer's here, so the next few chapters will come out a quicker, I promise.**

**Batman-defeats-all, MyLittleAngelxxx, Angel of Mysteries, Jedi Ani Unduli, candi711, nequam-tenshi, romeondjuliet4-ever, and Nessa671 have my gratitude for reviewing. **

**Special thanks to romeondjuliet4-ever and Little Karma for submitting the last OC's. **

**Re-edit: Thank you to all of you who submitted OC's! I will now NO LONGER take any OC's.**

**I'd also like to apologize to nequam-tenshi for messing up and leaving Gentil out of the list by accident. I hope one of the last parts of the chapter helps to make amends.**

**Here's what I have so far:**

**Villains: Stake**

**Blast**

**Lilac**

**Midnight Prowler**

**Shadow**

**MockingJay**

**Black Rose**

**Dark Angel **

**Gamble**

**Heroes: Sin**

**Jeta**

**Halfte**

**Gentil**

**Insight**

**Night Bird**

**Shadow Tamer**

**Mystery**

**Morph**

**P.S. If anything of this is wrong, you MUST private message me to let me know (or leave it in this chapter's review).**

_Italics _**= thoughts, "telepathic communication"/ "radio communication"/ "on television", time stamps, flashbacks**

**Bold= exaggerated words**

**This is the Buried Secrets version of **_Usual Suspects_**. **

**Warning: Characters are most likely OOC, and profanity is used at certain points in the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Young Justice. **

* * *

><p><em>Geneva<em>

_December 24, 04:09 CET_

"Did you get the case?" A loud, booming voice echoed across the dark room.

"Relax," a girl came into the light, "Interpol still hasn't noticed the other missing artillery I've stolen from the factories. Like I thought, Parasite's little independent stunt bought me cover."

Somewhere in the room, the man was pleased. But he still continued gruffly, "Did any surveillance catch you? Are you **sure **that not a single soul knows of what you stole?"

The girl rolled her purple eyes, "If you're worried about the kiddie sidekick team, then you don't know them at all. They were so wrapped up in proving the circus innocent and capturing Parasite that they didn't notice a thing. Not even the Boy Wonder suspects anything."

"Excellent," the man stepped out of the shadows. His slightly brown face had three long, pale scars across his face. "The Light is very pleased with you, Mirage."

"Thank you," Mirage smiled slyly, "But if we're done here, I got a little…family bonding time waiting for me in Gotham."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 25, 8:24 EDT_

"Merry Christmas!" Alice smiled from besides the tree. She was beaming brightly with a red- ribonned gift in her hands.

Artemis only rubbed her eyes in response. After they had caught Parasite, Artemis promptly went back home and slept for the rest of the day. She woke up in the evening to patrol with Red Arrow, only to crash back onto her pillow in the early morning. Needless to say, Artemis was still deprived of sleep. Not to mention, she really needed to focus on her grades at Gotham Academy if she wanted to keep her scholarship.

"I got you a gift!" Alice beamed as she gave Artemis the gift in her hands.

"Thanks," Artemis smiled gently at her. Little-or rather not so little- Alice had certainly grown on Artemis.

Alice leaned in towards Artemis, cupping her hand over her mouth as she whispered, "Mom wants to see a certain boy for Christmas dinner. You apparently brought him home before."

It didn't take long for Artemis to realize that Alice was referring to Roy. She hadn't brought anybody from the Team home with the exception of him; and as for Gotham Academy, who was she kidding? She was lucky she just didn't sit by herself at lunch time. Bette sat with her occasionally (she was always busy doing lunch-time activities to pad her college application), but Artemis spent most of her time with Barbara Gordon and her eccentric-yet-completely-relatable-to friend Richard Grayson.

"Ugh," Artemis groaned so Alice wouldn't get the wrong idea, "I told her that I'm barely just **friends** with the guy."

Alice tilted her head, "Is he one of your extracurricular team mates?"

"He wouldn't happen to be named 'Roy', right?" Alice added, the corners of lips twitching upwards.

Artemis gave her a horrified look. Different scenarios of how Alice could have discovered him ran through her head. None of them were really **that **realistic, but they were all horrifying either way.

Upon seeing Artemis's expression, Alice rushed to explain. "You mumble that name in your sleep sometimes."

Artemis flushed a deep red and her cheeks burned. Had she really?

Alice giggled, "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me!"

Artemis groaned and plopped down on the couch, burying her face in shame.

"Good morning, girls!" Paula beamed as she wheeled herself in.

Alice rushed over to her excitedly, "I got you a gift. Come and see!"

Paula chuckled good-naturedly, "Alright, alright. I got a gift for both of you, but I'm afraid you're going to have to wait awhile to receive it."

As Alice dug underneath the tree for Paula's present, Paula turned towards her still-groaning blonde daughter.

"Is there any chance that my future son-in-law is going to be here tonight?" Paula teased, her eyes twinkling in merriment.

In response, Artemis groaned and chucked the pillow she had been burying her face in.

Paula dodged it and _thunked _Artemis on the head lightly. "I'm just trying to help you! Your social skills are just….not as good as your archery skills!"

Artemis couldn't help but **REALLY **wish she didn't wake up yet.

* * *

><p><em>Washington D.C.<em>

_December 30, 09:16 EDT_

"_You are watching the live coverage of the Justice League's induction of its five newest members,"_ Cat Grant announced. _"Looks like the entire __**League **__showed up to welcome the new blood. Everyone from Batman to Captain Marvel."_

Wally chewed on an apple, "I'm glad they didn't kick Billy out."

He added, "And I love the fact that there's a ten-year old on the League!"

"There is?" Rocket, or Raquel Ervin, the newest addition to the Team inquired.

Robin elbowed Wally in the ribs, "Way to keep a secret, genius!"

"Ow!" Wally protested. "Hey, she's on the Team now, right?"

"_Superman is now handing out official League membership cards."_

Artemis scrutinized the television screen. Roy had finally gotten what he wanted: Justice League Membership. She felt happy for him, she really did, but she couldn't help but feel a little envious too.

"_Starting with Dr. Fate," _Cat Grant began to report.

Zatanna bit her lip and looked down sadly. Artemis wanted nothing more than to reach out to her, but Robin beat her to it by putting a reassuring hand on Zatanna's shoulder.

"_Atom, Plastic Man, and Icon," _Cat finished.

"You know," Rocket exclaimed indignantly, "I was the one to convince Icon to become a hero **in the first place**. I should be outside **celebrating with him**. Not hidden away in here!"

Kaldur smiled slightly at her, "Welcome to our world."

"Well," Rocket grinned, clearly charmed by the Atlantean, "I **suppose **there's an upside too."

_So is this what's happening here? We're all pairing off one by one into couples? I mean, there's M'gann and Superboy, Robin and Zatanna, and now possibly Kaldur and Rocket!_

"_Finally, Green Arrow welcomes his former protégée, Speedy, now known as Red Arrow, to this roster of heroes."_

"Way to go, Roy!" Wally cheered loudly.

Artemis smiled fondly at the television screen. "Way to go, Roy!" she echoed quietly.

In her mind, she thought of what she could say to him when he came in. Congratulations, you finally made it? It was hard coming up with something sincere that didn't make her feel like she was groveling at his feet.

"At last, he gets his wish," Kaldur stated.

"The first of us to make it!" Robin grinned, "No one will call **him **a sidekick anymore."

"Wait," Rocket cut in, "Since **when** is being a sidekick a **bad **thing? You sidekicks were my inspiration!"

"Well see," Robin started to explain, "six months ago it-"

He was interrupted by a _beeping _sound on his wrist watch.

"Cheshire was just spotted by the facial recognition features at the Ashville Regional Airport!" Robin announced.

_**Jade? **__What the hell does she think that she's doing?_

Kaldur frowned, "If that's true, we must depart at once and apprehend her."

"Ooh!" Rocket squirmed in obvious delight, "Finally! Some action!"

Wally took a last bite of the apple and pumped his fist in the air, "Yeah! Let's go kick some assassin butt!"

Then he faltered, "Wait. Shouldn't we wait for Roy?"

Artemis, Conner, and M'gann had been quiet the whole time. But now Artemis spoke up, "He's part of the League now. We don't have to wait around for him. He can manage his own."

In truth, Artemis preferred to keep Roy **away **from her sister. But it was **only** out of concern that they'd end up in a relationship in which they'd end up hurt…..at least….Artemis **hoped **that was the reason why.

M'gann stood up, still holding Conner's hand. "The bio-ship is still parked in camouflage mode outside. I'll go summon her."

Robin only grinned in the meanwhile, "Kaldur, Wally. Am I the only one getting a sense of déjà vu?"

* * *

><p>"And <strong>how <strong>did I know you guys would pull the disappearing act?"

To the whole Team's shock, Red Arrow was sitting down in the pilot chair of the bio-ship with his arms folded smugly.

Artemis huffed and pushed past him and the others to her own seat. "Shove off, _Speedy_."

"I don't think so," Red Arrow said, looking at all of them. "You're up to something and I want in."

"Well," Wally began.

Artemis cut him off, "I would have thought you out of all people would've been celebrating your League Membership. Now I see that you only want to flaunt it in the rest of our faces."

Red Arrow raised his eyebrow and, for a moment, Artemis actually thought he was going to let her out-of-the-line comment go.

"Gee, Artemis. Jealous much?" he retorted instead.

Artemis snorted, "Of you? No way in hell!"

"Okay, what's their problem?" Rocket turned questioningly to M'gann.

M'gann smiled sheepishly, "They've always had this kind of rivalry. I think it's best that we, um, ignore them for now."

Everyone sat down in their seats, and Red Arrow confidently stood up from the pilot's seat to take his own behind Artemis.

He leaned forward to mutter in Artemis's ear. "Try to tone down your jealousy, will ya?"

Artemis merely exhaled in obvious exasperation and looked out the window.

* * *

><p><em>Smokey Mountains<em>

_December 30, 10:48 EDT_

"Okay, so are you going to tell me what we're doing or what?" Red Arrow's voice boomed across the silence.

"We're going after Cheshire, aka Jade Nguyen," Robin answered pulling up security footage. "Facial recognition features spotted her boarding flight 1398 at the Ashville Regional Airport."

"Artemis, Red Arrow, you've **both **seen Cheshire without her mask. Is that her?" Kaldur asked, folding his arms in seriousness.

Red Arrow seemed uncomfortable, "I was too busy getting Cheshire **off me **to really take a look at her face."

Artemis snorted, "Of course you were. Anyway, there's no doubt about it." She stared intently at the face on the screen before her, "It's Jade. Cheshire."

"Well," Robin started, "it's not her that we're particularly interested in. It's what she has."

He zoomed in to show that Cheshire was holding a case.

"Is it the same case you saw in New Orleans, Artemis? The one that got away?" Kaldur questioned her.

And it was. The same case that she **should have gotten**, but she **choked**. And Roy had taken full advantage of it.

"Yes," Artemis admitted sorrowfully. She didn't like being reminded that she had failed to **Jade, Roy, and Daddy Dearest.**

"Okay," Rocket cut in, "I'm guessing by the mug shot that this 'Cheshire' is the bad guy, but what's so important about the case?"

"Remember the Injustice League?" Robin asked as the pictures on the screen changed.

"And their giant, evil plants?" Rocket sarcastically answered. "Uh, **yeah**!"

Kaldur took over for Robin, "The Team and the League put them in prison, but their allies still scheme. Whatever is in that containment case seems important to their plans."

"We had a chance to catch in **New Orleans**," Kid Flash somberly interrupted. "But **someone**," he glared at Artemis, "screwed up."

Artemis narrowed her eyes right back at him, as if to say, _Oh please, like __**you've**__ never messed up before._

"Approaching Cheshire's jet!" M'gann announced.

Everyone in the bio-ship leaned forward in anticipation. The sight before them made them all wince and look away.

"Looks like there were no survivors," M'gann said softly.

* * *

><p>"You okay?" Artemis asked, concerned. She reached out to put her hand on his shoulder, but she hesitated and put it back at her side.<p>

"I'm **fine**," Red Arrow rubbed his temples with his fingers crossly. "I just feel a bit of a headache coming on."

"**Again**?" Artemis folded her arms in suspicion. "You've been having them a **lot **lately. Maybe you should sit this one out."

"I **said**," Red Arrow gritted his teeth in obvious aggravation, "I'm **fine**."

With that, he stalked off to join the others in looking through the wreckage of the plane.

Artemis huffed before kicking the snow in annoyance. Why did he **always **have to push her away when she was just **trying** to **help**?

She began to walk to where the others were grouped.

"And because Cheshire and that case represent **our **unfinished business." Kaldur was saying.

"Where are the bodies?" Conner asked as he threw what remained of the left wing away.

Artemis blinked in realization. For a moment, Artemis was worried that something had **happened **to Jade. And though Jade had backstabbed her, Artemis couldn't help but feel concerned for her.

"Here's one," a sudden voice cut across the air.

Everyone turned to look towards the source.

_Jade._

"And it is **stunning**." Cheshire continued arrogantly.

She posed and blew a kiss to Red Arrow, "Nice to see you again, Arrow."

Artemis smiled in relief, but it was short-lived.

"I am flora, not fauna. I am foliage, not trees." Another voice came from behind and above Artemis.

She spun around in surprise and was shocked to see many people in white carrying Apokoliptan weapons.

"What am I?" The Riddler grinned as he snapped his fingers.

Poles shot up from the ground and formed a green force field dome around them. They were trapped.

"C'mon," Riddler frowned, "You can get this!"

Artemis instinctively reached for an arrow from her quiver. This guy was getting on her nerves.

"I am shrubbery, not grass. What am I? I…." Riddler trailed off.

"Ambush," Robin completed, frowning as he took it all in.

The Riddler laughed in response, "Didn't you **think **we'd be **tipped **you were on Cheshire's trail? We're tired of your interference, kiddies. **This **is your endgame, ordered from above and executed by their master strategist…**moi**."

"_Miss Martian," _Kaldur asked, _"Is everyone linked?"_

"_Yes," _M'gann answered as she brought what looked to be her game face on.

"_Go!" _And with Kaldur's simple command, the Team swung into action.

* * *

><p>Artemis growled as she swung her bow at her sister. Cheshire had easily deflected and dodged her earlier arrows, and Zatanna's blizzard spell was kind of making it hard for Artemis to see anyway.<p>

"It's like old times!" Cheshire said gleefully as she spun and attempted to low kick Artemis. "Dad pitting us against each other."

Artemis's eyes narrowed behind her mask. Mustering all her strength, she pushed her bow against Cheshire's swords. Then she began to turn, hoping to knock Cheshire over with a blow to the face. However, when Artemis turned around, Cheshire was already lying on the ground.

Artemis raised her eyebrow at the scene in front of her before blowing a strand of blonde hair out of her face irritably. "You couldn't let me finish her off on my own?"

Red Arrow grinned from where he was, about a foot away from Cheshire with an arrow drawn. "Not a chance, Blondie."

Artemis rolled her eyes, but smiled back at him anyway. His arrogance had started to grow on her a bit.

"_SB, you're flying!" _Robin shouted in surprise through their telepathic link.

Sure enough, Superboy was going crazy in his fight with Mammoth. He was even flying and using heat vision! Artemis was so distracted by Conner's sudden display of those skills that she didn't notice the cliff side above her beginning to collapse.

"**ARTEMIS!**" Both Cheshire and Red Arrow screamed as the rocks started to collapse right over her head.

Artemis's eyes widened as she looked up, and before she could do anything, the wind was knocked out of her.

* * *

><p>"Ugh," Artemis groaned as she rubbed her head. As she opened her eyes, she saw a tan hand extended to her.<p>

Still wide-eyed, Artemis accepted Cheshire's help in standing up.

**Cheshire** had tackled **Artemis** out of the way, therefore **saving her life**.

Upon spotting Artemis's confused expression, Cheshire huffed exasperatedly. "Okay, fine. We're **sisters**; I don't actually want you **dead**."

With that Cheshire disappeared, leaving a still very confused and distraught Artemis in her wake.

* * *

><p>"Artemis! Are you all right?" Red Arrow asked, assessing her for any injuries frantically. He had arrived almost a moment after Cheshire disappeared.<p>

"I'm **fine**," Artemis grumbled, still brushing herself off. Her pride was once more knocked off its tilt in front of Red Arrow.

Red Arrow suppressed a chuckle, "And how does **that **lie sound familiar?"

"Ah ha!" Artemis pointed a finger accusingly at him, "So you **admit **you were lying!"

Red Arrow rolled his eyes, but the smile was still there. "C'mon, the battle's not over yet. We still have work to do."

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_December 30, 15:45 EDT_

"You hacked League systems, disobeyed protocol, and endangered your lives. And your initiative resulted in the capture of three escaped felons, proving Warden Strange runs Belle Reve as a cover for criminal activity," Batman droned stoically.

Then he actually **smiled **from behind his cowl, "Well done."

Everyone smiled as they looked at each other in triumphant victory. Kid Flash even offered Artemis a slight grin to show that there were no hard feelings.

"And then there's this," Batman stepped forward to allow Icon to show them the containment case. "Bio-technology integrated with some form of nano-circuitry."

The reddish-purple chips glowed eerily in the light of the briefing room.

"Though I am…..unfamiliar with this species, the bio component is **clearly **not of Earth," Icon imputed as he examined one of the chips up close.

"Well," Batman seemed thoughtful, "We'll further examine this at the Watch Tower."

With that, Batman, Red Tornado, Black Canary, and Icon turned to exit through the Zeta Beams.

Artemis spun around to Red Arrow. "Shouldn't you be going with them?" Artemis asked softly, "You know, celebrating?"

Red Arrow's expression morphed into something more hesitant. "I think…." He paused thoughtfully before smiling at her, "I'll stay here."

"Besides," he narrowed his eyes in Conner's direction, "I have some **unfinished business**…"

"Roy!" Artemis's hands instinctively reached for Roy's arm. "**Don't.**"

"Fine," Roy grumbled. "For now….." he muttered underneath his breath.

Robin turned to address the whole Team. "You** realize** we were set up?"

"Yes," Kaldur turned thoughtful, "Cheshire and Riddler were….**tipped** and ready for us."

The conversation seemed so familiar, and Artemis quickly realized what it was leading to.

"Ugh," Artemis groaned putting a hand to her head in exasperation. "Not the mole thing again!"

"**Mole **thing" Rocket was confused. "Again?"

Kid Flash jumped in, "We had intel that there was a traitor on the Team."

Conner angrily pushed through the rest of the Team through the back, "Mainly Artemis, M'gann, or **me**!" He glared at Roy.

_Oh no. Mount Harper about to blow in 3...2..._

"I don't know what your real problem is, Superboy, but you almost got Artemis **killed** when you were fighting Mammoth!" Roy growled at Conner. "And I got two words for you: Anger. Management."

"Funny," Conner snorted, "I could say the same about you."

"Enough," Kaldur stepped in between the two. He turned to Conner, "And the mole situation is more complex than you realize."

"Whatever," Conner scoffed as he stalked off. Then he paused, suddenly clutching his head.

"Superboy!" M'gann levitated towards him. "Are you alright?"

Conner straightened, "I'm fine. There's just something I need to do."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 30, 19:26 EDT_

Artemis heaved a sigh as she silently closed the apartment door behind her. Surprisingly the television was off. Normally Paula would've been watching the news, or Alice watching the history channel.

Instead, Alice was kneeling next to the coffee table playing cards with someone whose back was to Artemis.

"Oh hey," Alice said, not looking up from her deck. "Mom went out for an errand. She's supposed to be back in about ten minutes."

Truth be told, Artemis was pleasantly surprised to find that Alice had found a friend. Knowing the cruelty of some Gotham children, she was almost afraid that the girl who had quickly become a sister to her would be bullied due to her way too mature personality.

"Four tens!" Alice announced to the other player.

"You're lying," the other player accused calmly, not looking up from his hand of cards.

Alice sighed, "You're supposed to shout 'BS!'. A little more emotion would be ideal."

He seemed puzzled at her response, "But it is so rude! The words are not kind and a loud voice may disturb the neighbors."

"Whatever," Alice shrugged nonchalantly, but you could tell she was smiling by her voice. "I'm going to the kitchen to grab a drink. Do you want anything, you guys?"

"No, thanks," Artemis and the boy declined politely at the same time.

As Alice got up to leave, the boy stretched his arms and turned around to face Artemis.

"What are you doing here?" Artemis grinned, once she saw who he was.

Si Nguyen smiled, "I'm here to visit, of course. My train was delayed, so I couldn't come in time for Christmas, but I'm here for New Years!"

"That's great!" Artemis beamed, "And I guess you've met Alice too."

"Yeah," Si looked troubled. He took a deep breath, "Can I tell you something, Artemis?"

Artemis nodded uncertainly, "Um, yeah."

Si took a step closer to Artemis and cupped his hand to the side of his mouth, as if he was telling a secret. "Alcee has been having troubles."

"Alcee?" Artemis asked, slightly puzzled. In truth, she wasn't really, but her mind desperately hoped it really wasn't who she thought it was.

Si bobbed his head up and down, "Alcee is the nickname I gave her. Anyway, she's **extremely **fragile and sickly for her age."

Artemis gave him a weird look, "She's about the same age as you, Si. Besides, what do you **mean **she's sickly? She seems perfectly healthy to me!"

Si shook his head, "No. When I was playing capture-the-flag with her earlier, she was constantly stopping to catch her breath, even in the first few minutes. She was pale and it looked like she was going to collapse." He gestured to the cards still lying on the coffee table, "That's why I suggested we go inside and play cards or something."

"Well, thank you, Si, for looking after Alice," Artemis smiled briefly at him before casting a worried glance towards the kitchen. Alice was currently rummaging through the cabinet for a clean cup.

_I've been so wrapped up in my own personal stuff, that I forgot to think of Alice and how's she adjusting to her new life. _Artemis realized.

"But that's not all," Si told her somewhat sorrowfully. His blue-gray eyes looked so sad. "The neighborhood kids bully and make fun of her because she's not **really** part of your family. They call her 'Street Rat' and teased her mercilessly when she found their flag. They said that it was because she knew every nook and cranny from sleeping in the streets every night. She managed to ignore them, but I think she was about to cry."

"**What?**" Artemis thundered angrily.

_I am SO dealing with them later!_

Si looked down ashamedly, "I'm sorry to say that I lost control of my temper and started yelling at them. I think I only made it worse."

"No, Si," Artemis protested, reaching out to put her hand on his shoulder comfortingly. She then pulled him into a hug, "You did what we all would have done. You protected Alice, and that's what matters."

"Am I interrupting something?" Paula seemed amused as she wheeled herself into her apartment.

Artemis smiled as she pulled away from hugging Si, "Oh, hey, Mom!"

"We were just….." Artemis trailed off. Should she tell Paula? It seemed a good idea until Artemis thought of how upset Paula would be.

After a few moments of silence, Paula shook her head, chuckling. "I will never get my daughters."

Upon hearing the word "daughters", Artemis stiffened. She was still confused over Jade. Her older sister, despite betraying her and leaving her to her own devices against their dad, saved Artemis's life by pushing her out of the way. Then Jade refused to fight her and the Team. True, it was different from her usual attitude towards Artemis, but it didn't exactly make them sisters again.

Paula smiled, but not for the reason that Artemis was upset about. "Yes, Artemis, my **daughters.**" She brought out a stack of papers from her pocket. "Here's your late Christmas present."

Artemis frowned as initially read the papers over her mom's shoulder. Then, as she got towards the end, she began to beam.

"Oh, mom!" Artemis hugged Paula happily, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"What did I miss?" Alice walked in, confusion written all over her face.

Artemis ran across the room and enveloped her in a hug, "Welcome to the family, Ally!"

Artemis was too preoccupied with her own happiness to notice the tears brimming from Alice's eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>For those of you who don't understand the ending, Alice has finally officially been adopted by the Crock family! Sadly, the adoption didn't happen until one of the last chapters of <strong>_Buried Secrets_. **Yes, this story is coming to an end (which you guys will REALLY hate). **

**Yes, I know Roy wasn't in the battle with Cheshire and the Riddler, but hey, he's one of the major characters of the story! Besides, I couldn't stand it that Roy missed out on the sidekick's own mission AGAIN. Hopefully I won't lose some readers after I write this, but: **_Buried Secrets_ **is NOT going to be a WallArt fic. I might scatter a few hints throughout the story, but WallArt fans already won because WallArt and CheshRoy are CANNON. So I'd at least like to get a somewhat RoyArt ending in my own fanfic.**

**I cut out a few parts, but after the next chapter, the time skips will be explained through flashbacks. Just a warning, I might go back and fill it in later when I have the chance for this chapter. If that happens, I will put up that I changed the story on the summary. **

**All the submitted OC's will be in the sequel to **_Buried Secrets_.

**I know I haven't updated in awhile, and I'm going to Europe for the next three weeks (with no internet!), so I REALLY wanted to give you something before the hiatus got too long. I hope you enjoyed it!**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	11. Turning Point

**Hey, I'm back! It's been a long time, I know. And for that, I'm REALLY REALLY sorry. Unfortunately, my school's started up, so it might take awhile for another update.**

**I'd like to thank all of my faithful readers; those who've ever reviewed the story to those who've been following **_**Buried Secrets. **_

**You know the drill: Little Karma has my thanks for submitting the last OC; Big gratitude to nequam-tenshi, candi711, batman-defeats-all, Guest, lolastarr50, and lolajam77 for submitting a review to the last chapter.**

**Here's what I have so far:**

**Villains:**

** Stake**

**Blast**

**Lilac**

**Midnight Prowler**

**Shadow**

**MockingJay**

**Black Rose**

**Dark Angel **

**Gamble **

**Heroes:**

** Sin**

**Jeta**

**Halfte**

**Gentil**

**Insight**

**Night Bird**

**Shadow Tamer**

**Mystery**

**Morph**

**P.S. If anything of this is wrong, you MUST private message me to let me know (or leave it in this chapter's review).**

_Italics _**= thoughts, "telepathic communication"/ "radio communication"/ "on television", time stamps, flashbacks**

**Bold= exaggerated words**

**This is the Buried Secrets version of **_Auld Acquaintances_**. However, this is only a PART of it. I split it into two.**

****This chapter is titled "Turning Point" as its equivalent is the climax of season one, and because of the sudden turn of events.****

**Warning: Characters are most likely OOC, and profanity is used at certain points in the story. There are slight spoilers for Young Justice Season two at the end as well.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Young Justice. **

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 30, 19:56 EDT_

"Alice," Artemis spoke quietly as she shut the bedroom door behind her. "We need to talk."

"What is it?" Alice turned away from the window to look at her older foster sister.

Artemis took a deep breath, "I've been hearing that you have a health issue…and a slight bully problem."

Alice smiled, but Artemis noticed that it didn't reach her eyes. "I'm fine. The neighborhood kids were just teasing me, that's all. And I'm perfectly healthy, as you can see."

"You don't seem perfectly fine to me," Artemis's eyes narrowed. She had just noticed that Alice still leaned on her left side to avoid the use of her right ankle.

"Stop it," Alice whispered, though Artemis wasn't sure why she had suddenly lowered her voice. "I don't need you to dote on me too…."

"It's not doting!" Artemis argued. "It's being **concerned **for your own personal health!"

Alice's hand reached out to touch the window, as if she yearned to be outside rather than have this conversation. "You shouldn't protect me," she said quietly, "You'll only get hurt."

Artemis stepped forward, "You shouldn't be afraid of losing us by involving us in your problems. That's what family's for, Ally. They help each other."

It felt so odd for Artemis to say those words. They were so out of context with her own life that she could barely believe them herself.

_But your real family isn't Jade and Dad. It's the Team, remember? That's where your true loyalties should lie._

"Jake said that too," Alice murmured sadly. "And then I never saw him again….."

"Jake?" Artemis's curiosity bled out of her, "Who's Jake?"

Alice stiffened, "He was my older brother."

A hollow feeling came over Artemis as the word "was" rang through her mind several times. Had Alice been abandoned by her older sibling as well?

"I'm so sorry, Alice," Artemis reached out to the younger girl. "Did he leave you alone to face your dad?"

Alice let out a depressed sigh, and when she spoke, her voice faltered. "I-I'd rather not talk about it, if you don't mind, Artemis."

"Oh," Artemis said weakly, feeling a bit disappointed. "I understand."

It was Alice's business anyway, and it wasn't like Artemis told Alice everything either. How could she expect Alice to trust her if Artemis hesitated to tell her what was **really **going in her life?

"I'm sorry," Alice's eyes brimmed with tears that threatened to spill. "It's not that I don't trust you or anything, Artemis. It's just…it hurts too much to talk about it." Then, before Artemis could stop her, Alice ran from the room.

* * *

><p><em>Washington D.C,<em>

_December 31, 00:16 EDT_

"_Artemis! Artemis, come in!" _ A sudden voice in her intercom jolted Artemis awake.

Quickly, she grabbed the ear piece from her drawer and jammed it into her ear, hoping like crazy that the Alice hadn't heard it.

Relief washed over her when she saw Alice peacefully sleeping.

Careful to not wake up Alice, Artemis opened up the window and clambered onto the fire escape.

"What is it?" Artemis hissed. It had better been an emergency for waking Artemis up so early in the morning.

"_Now's not the time for hospitalities, Artemis. I know who the mole is now; and don't trust-" _

Artemis strained to hear his voice over the sounds of his panting and loud footsteps.

"What's happening?" Artemis asked in alarm. "Are you okay?'

Red Arrow didn't respond. She heard footsteps stop and widened her eyes in horror as the sound of explosions and Roy most likely getting punched around filled her intercom.

"Red Arrow!" Artemis shouted, forgetting to try to keep her voice down to a whisper.

The sound of incoming train echoed in her ear. Red Arrow's gasps of pains were the last thing the intercom transmitted to Artemis before she heard a _crunch _….and then nothing.

"Roy," She whispered.

* * *

><p><em>Mount Justice<em>

_December 31, 07: 16 EDT_

Artemis couldn't sleep in the seven hours that Roy's intercom went dead. She paced back and forth outside on the fire escape worriedly before heading back inside. It was too cold out for Artemis while she was in her night dress.

Every time she attempted to fall asleep, a bloodied and bruised Roy came into her mind. What if he was dead?

_No, Roy can handle his own….I'm sure of it…Besides, he wouldn't die the day after achieving what he always wanted, would he?_

Now Artemis was gathered with the Team in the Cave. So far, she had yet to manage to bring up her midnight "conversation" with Roy. She had no idea how she was to present to the Team the possibility that Red Arrow might be dead. Not to mention, how was she supposed to explain why Roy had contacted **her**? Their late night patrols were **their** own secret. Possessive as it sounds, Artemis wanted to keep that tidbit of information to herself.

"We have reasons to feel proud of yesterday's victories," Kaldur started as they walked down a hallway. "But one thing still has not changed."

"Somehow," Robin narrowed his eyes, "the bad guys are **still** getting inside intel about us."

"Yeah," Kid Flash agreed, "But at least we know none of us are the mole."

Artemis's eyes widened as she remembered Roy's words. _"I know who the mole is; don't trust-"_

_Don't trust who? Roy never finished…._

"That's correct….." Batman cut into their conversation from where he was in the debriefing room. "The mole…..was Red Arrow."

"That can't be…" Artemis whispered as she watched Red Arrow's picture show up.

"**Roy**?" Robin questioned in disbelief.

"No way!" Kid Flash protested.

"Batman," Kaldur argued. "That cannot be: he was Green Arrow's protégé. We have all known him for **years**!"

Artemis cast a side-glance at the rest of her teammates. M'gann and Zatanna were extremely surprised, while Rocket seemed confused. Superboy only looked aggravated and angry.

"Unfortunately," Red Tornado inputted, "the Roy Harper we have known for the last three years was another Project Cadmus clone."

Batman added, "We've learned the real Speedy was abducted and replaced immediately after becoming Green Arrow's sidekick."

So the Roy she had known wasn't real?

_No, _she told herself, _He's __**just as real**__ as Superboy is at the very least._

"The clone was pre-programmed with a drive to join the Justice League," Batman continued, "which is why he was so angry with any delays to his admission and refused to join the Team. This Roy Harper had no idea he was a clone or a traitor, and his subconscious programming drove him to become….League-worthy. So he struck out on his own as Red Arrow. When he was finally admitted, his secondary program kicked in, and he attempted to betray the League to Vandal Savage. Fortunately, I had already deduced Red Arrow was a clone; we were prepared."

"Savage was subdued," Red Tornado stated, "but Red Arrow escaped. He is now a fugitive, armed and dangerous."

Superboy's eyebrows were still furrowed as he rubbed his neck. "If you guys hadn't rescued me from Cadmus…."

"What-what happened to the real Roy?" Robin spoke up, not looking whelmed in the least.

"We don't know," Batman's eyes narrowed. One could easily assume that Batman didn't like to admit that he had limited knowledge on some things. "He isn't at Cadmus. We have to face the possibility that the **real **Roy Harper….is dead."

Silence came over the whole Cave as the three original sidekicks mourned the real Roy Harper's apparent death.

Robin's face scrunched up in morose. Zatanna, with a shy, hesitant smile, reached out to put a reassuring hand on Robin's shoulder.

Kid Flash visibly slumped, and Artemis couldn't help but feel really bad for him.

"The Clone Roy," Kaldur's voice cracked. "The Team will find him."

"Negative," Batman answered, "Red Arrow's a member of the Justice League now…..Leave him to us….If **any** of you know anything of his whereabouts or manage to come into contact with him, let us know.."

Artemis could've sworn he glanced particularly at her for the last part, but that could've been her imagination.

A _'beep' _emitted from Batman's intercom, and he listened to it in silence for a few moments.

"I'm needed on the Watchtower. Tornado, stay with the kids." Batman announced as he exited through the Zeta-Beam.

Artemis narrowed her eyes. Something was off about the whole situation. True, Batman was considered the world's greatest detective, but that didn't mean that he **knew everything **about clone Roy. The way he told them made it seem as if he was given the information ahead of time and clearly knew everything.

Kaldur turned around to face the rest of the Team. _"Clone or no clone, Red Arrow was one of us." _His eyes narrowed. _"We __**will **__go after him."_

"_Kaldur's right. We __**need **__to find Red Arrow," _The thought came out before Artemis could even stop it.

Meanwhile, Red Tornado had come up behind Kaldur and extended his hand out to him. Before he could touch him, Red Tornado shut down. The whole Team moved forward in concern.

"_Tornado!" _M'gann exclaimed worriedly. Kid Flash stepped up to peer up into his face.

"_What happened to him?" _Conner asked in curiosity.

"_He's totally powered down," _Kid Flash observed.

"_All functions offline," _Robin added as he opened up the screen on his wrist watch.

"_Guys," _Zatanna cut in, putting her hands on her head,_ "I'm sensing a low-level mystic force at play… I-I don't know if it caused his shutdown, but…" _

The Team waited in silence, waiting for Zatanna to finish her thought.

Zatanna frowned, _"Now that I think about it, I was getting the same buzz off of __**Batman**__!"_

"_Batman," _Robin looked up from his wrist watch, _"He….called us __**kids**__! He never does that!"_

"_Look," _Kid Flash said suddenly. He grabbed a small chip out of Red Tornado's hand, _"One of those bio –tech chips that we confiscated off Cheshire!"_

"_Something is not right," _Kaldur looked down thoughtfully. _"Robin, Kid, Zatanna, Rocket…."_

As he said each of their names, they all glanced at him.

"_See if you can get Red Tornado back online," _Kaldur ordered. _"The rest with me to find Ro- ….Red Arrow."_

Artemis smiled in relief, despite the situation. She was glad she didn't have to volunteer to search for Roy…that would've brought up questioning looks from the Team.

But just not to seem too eager or make it obvious, Artemis fell towards the back of the group as she, Kaldur, M'gann, and Conner all ran off towards the hanger.

* * *

><p><em>Washington D.C.,<em>

_December 31, 9:25 EDT_

"Computer logs indicate that Red Arrow zeta'd to the Hall from the Watch Tower." Artemis reported from her seat on the bio-ship. She added frustratedly, "But he could be anywhere by now!"

Kaldur turned towards Artemis, "After Roy went solo, he installed equipment cashes in several major cities. One is here."

The bio ship slowly began to descend in front of a shoddy- looking apartment building.

"Stay here," Kaldur ordered. "I will do this alone."

"No," Artemis protested, standing up. "I'll go with you too..."

Upon seeing Kaldur's raised eyebrow, Artemis rushed to explain, "You know, so you have back-up."

* * *

><p>"This would be A16," Artemis stopped at an apartment door.<p>

Kaldur tried to turn the doorknob, but when the door wouldn't open, he kicked the door down.

The room was dark; the only light coming rather dimly from the windows and the hallway.

Kaldur stepped forward into the room, glancing around before speaking. "I have not come to harm or apprehend you…..but the Team requires answers."

Artemis treaded in behind him. She could just barely make out Roy's figure near the windows. He had an arrow notched in his bow, ready to shoot.

"Me first," Red Arrow answered, his voice slightly raspy. "You can't honestly expect me to believe that you two would just happen to show up here. Both of you tell me something you've **never **told anyone else."

Kaldur sighed, slumping significantly, "The girl I loved chose my best friend over me. Meanwhile, my best friend on the surface aims an arrow at my heart."

Artemis blinked. She had never known how much Kaldur truly was holding on his shoulder. She thought he only had to deal with the responsibility of leading the Team!

"You too," Red Arrow turned to her, with the arrow still notched.

Kaldur looked at her expectantly.

"I…." Artemis started. What could she say that was okay if Kaldur heard too?

Red Arrow's eyes narrowed, "I'll come up with the questions, then. What did we do November 5?"

"We…" Artemis gulped as she struggled to remember exactly. "We went to the Happy Harbor Gala together."

He was still pointing an arrow at her heart. "And what line did you translate for me?"

Artemis racked her brain to recall. Then it struck her like lightning. "I'm lost," Artemis said softly, walking towards him. "Could you give me the directions to your heart?"

Red Arrow slowly lowered his bow. "So you're both legit."

Kaldur gave both Red Arrow and Artemis a weird look, but did not say anything.

"Roy," Artemis said quietly, putting her hand on his shoulder. "When you contacted me earlier, who did you not want me to trust?"

Red Arrow closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose, "The Justice League. They're under the control of Vandal Savage."

"We have suspected as much," Kaldur replied. "Though Red Tornado may be of help to us. Robin, Kid Flash, Zatanna, and Rocket are trying to bring him back online."

"Well," Artemis walked back over to the door, "What are we waiting for?"

* * *

><p>"We were told you were the mole," Kaldur started, his voice slightly echoing off of the bio ship's walls. "But we have reason to doubt."<p>

"Forget doubt," Red Arrow somewhat bitterly answered. "I **was **the mole."

"Batman and Tornado…." Conner spoke up from behind Red Arrow, "said that you….were a Cadmus clone like me."

Red Arrow took in what he said, "That explains it."

He sighed, "I was a sleeper agent, preprogrammed to infiltrate the League. I think…." He paused. "**Sportsmaster **was my handler. He had a key phrase, 'Broken Arrow', that shut me down; put me in a hypnotic state. He'd steal secrets for his superiors or…incorporate further programming."

No one in the bio ship interrupted him. If Red Arrow ever needed space before, he definitely needed it now.

"I've been carrying out the orders subconsciously, completely unaware of what drove me," Red Arrow looked downright ashamed. He turned to face Conner, M'gann, and Artemis. "I think one of those orders was to focus suspicion on the three of you."

Artemis's eyes widened. That would have explained why he had suddenly started mistrusting her back in New Orleans!

_And Dad was at the apartment around the time Roy came to supposedly apologize. No wonder he seemed even worse to me the next time!_

Red Arrow looked every one of the former mole suspects in the eye. "I'm sorry."

"You couldn't help it," Artemis told him. "It's something that couldn't be prevented."

"I'm sorry," M'gann apologetically cut in, "But how is it that **you **are no longer enslaved?"

"No Starro-Tech for starters," Red Arrow spat out the next words in disgust. "Just my **Cadmus programming**. And once I had satisfied its last parameter, my mind began to clear. "

"And was that when you had contacted Artemis?" Kaldur suddenly asked.

Artemis's face flushed. She had been hoping that Kaldur hadn't heard or had perhaps overlooked what she said earlier.

_Oh, the thoughts that must have been running through their hands right now..._

"Contacted Artemis?" M'gann looked confused.

"No," Red Arrow answered unfazed by the weird look M'gann and Conner were giving him and Artemis. "I did that once I escaped. I'm sure Savage planned to starro-tech me, though, but he paused to….bask in his success."

"Then I guess we should be glad that he liked gloating," Artemis spoke up. "Or you'd be with the rest of the Justice League."

"I promise," M'gann said solemnly from the pilot chair, "I can clean any residual programming from your mind."

* * *

><p><em>The Watchtower,<em>

_December 31, 7:16 EDT_

"The six members of the League have successfully departed for Rimbor," A feminine voice reported. The owner's eyes darted around in slight nervousness for once.

"Excellent." Her superior's back was still towards her. "I'd say you've been rather useful to the Light."

"I'd suppose," the girl answered humbly. "It is an honor to serve the Light in whatever way I can."

"Yes," the man droned. "It is. But you've been…distracted lately. You've been spending a little **too **much time on your 'project'... And the Light requires your service to its fullest potential…."

The girl stepped back, startled by his response. "What do you mean?"

Vandal Savage turned around from the window calmly, "You are useless to us distracted. And your emotions have started to become an issue with your loyalty."

The girl found her voice, "I am 100% faithful and dedicated to the Light!"

"Yes," Vandal Savage smiled slyly as footsteps echoed behind her. "You are."

He watched in satisfaction as a horned-boy came up behind her. The boy leaned forward, evidently whispering taunts into her ear as he placed his hand onto her neck.

She froze almost immediately, stiffening up for a few seconds. Then her body began to visibly relax and the expression in her eyes disappeared. She feel to her knees and bowed her head at Vandal Savage's feet.

"I live to serve the Light, and the Light only." the girl's voice was in complete monotone, devoid of any emotion.

"That's better," the boy purred from behind her.

Vandal Savage grinned from where he stood, looking down on the girl. "You belong entirely to the Light now."

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah, that's all I have so far. I know it's taken me a REALLY long time to get it, but I've been sort of busy. The ending is terrible, I know. But I wanted to submit something soon and a better ending would've taken longer. I'll probably use the switch-out feature to add something later though.<strong>

**And change in plans, **_Buried Secrets _**will have more chapters. I think there'll be three, maybe four more chapters. Originally, this was supposed to be the second to last chapter.**

**Artemis confronts Alice about her adjustment, and Alice reveals that she had an older brother. Piece of advice, you might want to remember that for the sequel…..which by the way, needs some suggestions for the title.**

**Roy is now known by the Team to be the real Mole, as well as a Cadmus clone. Kaldur also has a small insight on what's really going on between Artemis and Roy.**

**If any of you pay attention to the hints, you can guess the people in the last scene and what actually happened.**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	12. The Light at the End of the Journey

**Hey! I know it's been a LONG time since I last updated. I blame high school and its unnecessary task to teach you the things in life that you don't really need to know: like why Daphne Du Maurier's _Rebecca_ incorporated the consequences of lies and treachery... ANYWAY. **

**I'd like to thank Ninja Daughter of Hermes, candi711, EmiStone, nequam-tenshi, and WalkingStranger99. Those of whom are still reading this fanfic also have my gratitude. **

**Special thanks to the anonymous user who submitted a suggestion. There was an error in my account and the review was deleted. I wish I had written down the name before it happened so I could give you proper recognition.**

**Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to me and to** _Buried Secrets_**, which has been a year old ever since November.**

**For those who submitted OC'S, they will be in the sequel. Check the list in the previous chapters to verify if they are correct.**

**And many of you have made very...interesting speculations on who Mirage is. I will not say anything regarding this, but I am very encouraged and inspired by your comments.**

**As I have said the last chapter, many of you will most likely retract your favorites and alerts and hate my guts after reading this chapter. All I can tell you is that I'm sorry, and please stick around, because I promise that it WILL get better in the sequel (which STILL needs more suggestions for the title). **

**I also have a poll (that is kind of bad) on my profile that I would like you guys to take. It concerns the writing style of the story, because a part of me would REALLY like to try first person and maybe switch around which character's view point we're in.**

**This chapter is the second half of sorts of the episode** _Auld Acquaintances_**. The title of the chapter was made up last minute, but you will understand it when you finish the chapter.**

_Italics _**= thoughts, "telepathic communication"/ "radio communication"/ "on television", time stamps, flashbacks**

**Bold= exaggerated words**

**Warning: Slight language and may be slightly confusing to reader. Characters are also OOC.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice. **

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_December 31, 7: 30 EDT_

The girl bit her lip before her brown eyes stared at the clock again. She drummed her fingers on the desk in anticipation, counting down the seconds and willing for time to go faster.

"Put down your pen, please," the elderly, spectacled supervisor announced in monotone, his voice cutting across the silent tension in the room.

She had long since finished the exam. It had been so easy; clearly they had been expecting a lot less of her education. Of course, the Gotham Department of Education insisted that she used the regulated time of an hour. She had been restlessly waiting for almost half an hour.

During that time, she had pondered what she'd do for the rest of the afternoon. Her mother was patiently waiting outside for her. She'd no doubt ask her how the test went, take her out for a short and very fast lunch, and then drive her to back to apartment before going back to work.

Hopefully her older sister would still be there. She had just gotten up around the time they left. It honestly felt like forever since their conversation yesterday, and this time, the girl was determined to continue it without running off. If not, she always had her cousin to play with.

"Miss?" the man came up to her, holding his hand out expectantly for her exam paper. They were the only two in the room; the one other test taker had eagerly fled immediately after.

"Oh?" she blinked rapidly. "I'm very sorry. I was looking at the clock."

She sent him a sheepish smile before handing the rather thick pile over to him.

The man's hard eyes softened a little bit.

Many years had passed since the last time he had seen anyone as polite and modest as she. The children and adolescents that he had monitored were either arrogant know-it-alls or obnoxiously stupid morons. There was just something instantaneously likable about her.

"That's quite all right…" He adjusted his glasses, in order for him to see the name on her test. "…Alice Crock."

* * *

><p><em>The Watchtower<em>

_December 31, 23:36 EDT_

"_So what's the plan?"_ Artemis asked as she trailed behind Robin, M'gann, and Superboy (who, of course, had Wolf and Sphere with him). Rocket, Kid Flash, Aqualad, and Zatanna were out ambushing other League members to apply the cure-tech to them.

Robin smiled as he rubbed his hands in eager anticipation. _"We stay whelmed for one. Then we observe and strike when least expected."_

He turned to Superboy_, "Can you see how many League members are on the observation decks?"_

They were currently in one of the hallways leading to the main deck, but Robin wanted to gather more intel before barging in.

Superboy's eyes narrowed as he used his supervision, _"Just Klarion, a few League members, and a girl with a purple cloak. No sign of Vandal Savage."_

"Purple cloak?" Robin said to himself, pulling out his binoculars to look in. Artemis followed suit.

Klarion was floating in the air tapping on the red screens in front of him like it was a computer game. A girl leaned against a wall nearby to him, watching him in amusement.

Artemis's eyes narrowed behind the binoculars. _Mirage._

"Four of my toys down already!" Klarion grumbled.

"The kiddie-team has arrived then," Mirage pulled her hood back over her head so that it concealed all but her glowing purple eyes.

Klarion shared a sly smile with her. "That'd be your cue."

Mirage laughed, "I'll go get the hostage."

"_Hostage?"_ Robin echoed in confusion.

"_Maybe Dr. Serling Roquette after she helped us with the cure-tech?" _M'gann suggested.

"_I doubt it," _Artemis voiced, _"Roquette probably hid in a cellar after we left. Not really a brave person is she?"_

All stood completely still as they pondered who the hostage could possibly be. Superboy was the only one to make no suggestions.

Eventually, Mirage returned, dragging along a bound girl.

"Mmmph!" Mirage's hostage screamed loudly through her gags. Her eyes darted around frantically and her arms kept thrashing against its restraints.

"Where'd you get **that**?" Klarion asked snidely, crudely looking the girl up and down.

Mirage shrugged in disinterest, "Saw her around the Gotham zeta-beam transporter. She looked like a good hostage at the time."

"_Great." _Robin growled. _"She's got a __**civilian**__. Now we've got to somehow get that girl out of here with minimal damage."_

Meanwhile, Artemis had been observing Mirage, mentally preparing herself for another fight with the shape-shifter. She wasn't going to let Mirage get the upper hand this time.

_This will be for Inferno._ Artemis thought. A month or so back, he had been seriously injured during a fight against Mirage. As a result, it became just Artemis and Red Arrow doing their late-night patrol in Gotham.

Eventually, Artemis's gaze fell onto the hostage. Her eyes widened in realization as Artemis finally recognized who it was. "Alice," she whispered.

Somehow, Mirage had managed to kidnap her foster-sister. She didn't bother thinking about the likeliness or even the circumstances of the abduction.

In that instant of recognition, Artemis charged. Forgetting the original plan in a fit of sheer rage, Artemis rushed straight ahead at Mirage.

"_Artemis!" _Robin and M'gann shouted.

Not even caring if she did damage to the once semi-good thief, Artemis struck Mirage over atop the head with her bow, using all of the strength she had. Artemis was so concerned with Alice's well-fare that she barely comprehended that her bow went straight through Mirage, as well as that Mirage's image disappeared into thin air afterwards. . She even forgot about Klarion and Robin, Superboy, and M'gann.

Artemis turned to Alice, using her best comforting tone as she worked to remove the rope binding her hands together. "I'll help you…."

Alice's head slowly rotated around to her, like in one of those horror movies. What Artemis saw next was startling. Alice's usually kind brown eyes quickly turned purple in an instant, and a cruel, hard smirk formed in the place of Alice's sweet smile.

The breath of disbelief had hardly left her mouth before Mirage swung her leg into Artemis's abdomen….**hard.**

Groaning, Artemis could barely roll out of the way before Mirage could pin Artemis down with her boot.

Mirage smiled, but not like her usual playful smile. In an instant, six Mirages were walking tauntingly towards her as Artemis scrambled backwards on all fours.

"Guess you don't know about my ability to create illusions," she laughed harshly, taking a gleaming dagger from her side. "There's a **reason** for why I'm called **Mirage**, you know. And all I had to do was pretend to be this harmless frail girl, and you'd come running to the rescue."

Her eyes flashed, "Mess ahead, Artemis."

Mirage's dagger (which struck Artemis as really familiar) swung towards Artemis, and life flashed before her.

* * *

><p><em>The Watchtower<em>

_December 31, 23:40 EDT_

"What the-" Red Arrow started angrily. He had been battling Green Lantern under the control of Vandal Savage, only to all of a sudden be pulled out of the battle and off of the main deck.

He looked around, taking in his surroundings. He was at the dead end of a dark, secluded hallway.

"_Quiet," _a feminine voice spoke to him. But the way that it rang through his mind let him know that someone was speaking to him telepathically. And the voice was **not **Miss Martian.

"Whoever you are," Red Arrow notched an arrow and scowled menacingly, looking around him. "You better show yourself."

"_Relax,"_ A girl emerged from the shadows, holding her hands up in mock surrender. _"It's just me."_

"Give me **one **good reason why I **shouldn't **shoot you in the head," Red Arrow snapped. He refused to respond telepathically. There had to be a reason for why she was trying to keep him quiet.

"I'm a friend," she spoke carefully, trying to not push any of his buttons. The archer was practically a ticking time bomb.

"Yeah," Red Arrow scoffed disbelievingly, "Like I'm friends with **you**."

"Believe it or not," the girl reached to her side, "I am".

He instinctively pulled the arrow further back in response.

"It's okay," she whispered, showing him what she had been reaching for.

Red Arrow's eyes hardened, but he loosened and left his bow hanging by his side. "Where did you get that?"

She smiled in response, purple eyes gleaming. "You'll find that I'm **very **good at obtaining knowledge."

He raised his eyebrow, "And I'm supposed to believe that you're just going to hand that over?"

"I will in a moment." She answered, before shooting him a very apologetic smile. " And I'm really sorry about this, but first … _Broken Arrow._"

* * *

><p><em>The Watchtower<em>

_December 31, 23:38 EDT_

"Nice try," Robin laughed as he deflected Mirage's dagger with his staff. "But you forgot about us."

Using Robin's distraction, Artemis scrambled upwards, quickly taking in her surroundings. Superboy, M'gann, Wolf, and Sphere were all taking on the League members that were in the room. Klarion was tapping away on the screens, cackling as he manipulated the League members.

"_Now would be a good time to jump in, Artemis!" _Robin exclaimed telepathically while he dodged Mirage's various swipes with the dagger.

"_Right," _Artemis's eyes narrowed at Mirage as she drew back an arrow, ready and poised to shoot.

"_Two against one seems hardly fair," _Mirage smiled darkly as she lunged for Robin again.

Robin's eyes widened, and he just barely dodged Mirage. _"How did you-"_

"_Hack into your telepathic communication?" _Mirage's grin grew wider and, if possible, even darker. _"That was easier than tricking Artemis."_

"I thought you said you were above all of this," Artemis snapped as she swung a punch towards the shape-shifter.

"I lied," Mirage caught Artemis's fist. She then shifted into an all-too-familiar form, Jade.

"Just like you did," Jade sing-songed, using Artemis's fist to pull Artemis over her head and onto the floor with such force.

Artemis lay sprawled on the floor, groaning. How did Mirage suddenly have the strength of Superman? Okay, maybe not Superman, but she certainly did use super-human strength. Jade didn't have super-human strength, so how could she use it with that form? Even the Martians couldn't imitate and mix-and-match their forms' abilities.

"No one," she purred, then changing into Alice. "can save you now."

Alice kicked away Artemis's bow, causing it to slide across the deck. Robin was too engaged in a fight with Batman to help. While Artemis had been battling Mirage, Klarion had summoned six more League members. In other words, Artemis was truly alone again…**without **her bow.

Artemis's eyes widened as she stared up at the dagger once again.

_How does this __**keep **__happening today?!_

Nonetheless, Artemis quickly swept her feet across, knocking Mirage down, but only for a few moments. Both girls got up at the same time, and Artemis swung a left hook.

_Twang!_

A sudden sound got Mirage's attention, and she quickly turned around, all the while dodging Artemis's fist.

Artemis blinked almost unbelievingly at the arrow with the red fletching buried into Mirage's right arm.

"An eye for an eye," Red Arrow called out, smirking. He kicked Artemis's bow back towards her, and she quickly grabbed and notched an arrow with it.

Hissing in what appeared to be pain, Mirage attempted to pull out the arrow, but faltered, swaying back in forth. Clearly something was in the arrow. It could've even been the knock-out poison that Artemis had attempted to use on her a few months back.

"NO, no, no, no, **no**!" Klarion suddenly shrieked. He had seen the archers attack Mirage. In a moment, a large black hand caught Mirage's falling body. "Don't mess with my favorite toy!"

Klarion's magically summoned hand quickly brought an almost unconscious Mirage to his side. Without Klarion really controlling the League members, it was somewhat easier for Miss Martian, Superboy, and Robin to subdue the League.

"It's almost strange," Artemis murmured to Red Arrow as he dashed over to her. The two got into their circle formation. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that Klarion actually kind of cares for her."

"Too bad I can't say the same," Red Arrow's eyes narrowed behind his domino mask.

Artemis watched as he sent an arrow at Teekl, Klarion's familiar. Artemis followed suit; the cat may have been nimble, but once she got so much as hit one time, Klarion would be sent away from the mortal plane.

"You kiddies will pay!" Klarion screamed stamping his feet while summoning a large red fireball. The immortal lord of chaos could feel a major temper tantrum coming on.

It just barely missed Artemis and Red Arrow, as they scrambled to get out of the way.

"Stop, Klarion!" Mirage shouted, clearly wide awake now. She quickly got off of the magically summoned hand that vanished in the instant her body left. "Vandal Savage is ordering a tactical retreat."

" **Retreat**!?" Klarion howled. "We can still take the **kiddie** club! We can still fight!"

"Yes, but you could destroy the satellite or kill some League members," Mirage responded calmly. "You know you'd bring in the chaos, Klarion."

Oddly, Red Arrow loosened his arrow at her response, even letting his bow drop back to his side. Rather than take the opportunity like Artemis thought he would, Red Arrow seemed to be letting them go.

"Fine," Klarion grumbled, summoning a large yellow portal. Nonetheless, he smiled somewhat softly at the shape-shifter. "And, yeah, I'd totally bring the chaos."

"We're just letting them get away?!" Artemis meanwhile demanded to Red Arrow. He was just…standing there.

"They're leaving anyway," Red Arrow responded with an uncharacteristic shrug of his shoulders.

"_Take the shot, Artemis. Take the shot that Red Arrow's not going to make. Do you want to prove that you have no fear? Take the shot."_

And it was because of the voice in her head, constantly telling her to shoot, that Artemis sent one of her last arrows at Mirage's retreating figure.

In less than one second, Mirage turned around, facing the arrow with a hard smirk. Words couldn't really describe what she did next, but, to simply put it, Mirage **caught** and sent the arrow right **back** at Artemis. A possible feat, but **only** for an **advanced archer** with a **bow**.

Artemis's dark grey eyes widened in slight fear as her own arrow came hurtling back towards her.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

But Artemis's arrow never touched her. That was because Red Arrow had so **stupidly**, so** brashly**, so **arrogantly**, so **bravely**, and so **selflessly** got in the way. What an uber goob and arrogant jerk, assuming Artemis needed him to interfere!

"Roy!" Artemis screeched, immediately running to the fallen archer. She did not notice how all the battles around her stopped.

She turned his groaning form over onto his back and examined the wound. To her horror, it was a major wound, too big for her to do anything. A sick feeling washed over Artemis as she realized the familiarity of the scene unraveling before her eyes.

Blood. Blood was everywhere. The dark crimson stained almost everything in her sight, and the strong smell was too much to bear.

"You'll make it," Artemis began to babble, her hands constantly moving to try to find something that she could do. "You're okay. You can handle this wound, Roy."

"Artemis." His strong hand found hers. "Stop it."

"You're going to be okay," Artemis continued, insisting. But with each passing moment, it seemed more and more like she was trying to reassure herself.

"Calm down," Red Arrow attempted to comfort the hyperventilating Artemis. "You won't be able to get rid of me that easily."

A sob escaped from Artemis's throat. She had a bad feeling about where this was going.

"This is all my fault," Artemis looked down, ashamed and angry at herself.

_My fault…. All my fault._

"No," Red Arrow frowned, "It's not. It's Mirage's fault."

His answer didn't make Artemis feel much better. After all, it was **Artemis's** arrow in Roy at the moment.

"Listen," he began. "On the unlikely chance I don't make it out-"

"You will," Artemis interrupted, panicking once more. "You're stubborn and strong. You can fight it."

"Artemis!" Red Arrow barked. "For God's sake, you're acting as if I'm dying!"

"But-" Artemis began to speak. Red Arrow interrupted her.

"Now," he winced as he attempted to sit upright. Artemis gently pushed him back down. "I'm probably going to be stuck in the hospital for some time, but in the meanwhile, promise me you'll try to find the real Roy."

"Promise," came out shakily from Artemis.

At this point, Artemis realized that the others had realized the fallen archer, and they were now all silently surrounding the two. The other half of the Team was back too, and Kid Flash angrily kicked the floor as they watched the stubborn- as- hell archer die. Strangely, it was like they were all okay just hanging around in the background. Maybe it was because they felt as helpless as she felt.

_Do something. Do something!_ She screamed at herself. Artemis had just come to her senses.

Artemis's hands unsteadily reached for her arrow in Red Arrow's side, but, with shaky hands of his own, Red Arrow pushed it away.

"No," he croaked out. "Leave it there."

"I **have** to do **something**!"

Suddenly Artemis was beyond furious. Mad at herself for taking that shot when the Light was already retreating. Raging at Mirage for sending the arrow back at her. And, as much as she wanted to be infuriated with Roy, she couldn't. **She** could've been the one sprawled on the floor right now, but he had to try to be **some glorified hero** to make up for **unintentionally** being the mole.

"And you are," Red Arrow began to close his eyes. He was beginning to feel so tired. "Just stop crying. It's starting to freak me out."

"No!" Artemis screamed. She grabbed Red Arrow's shoulder and began to shake him. "Wake up! Don't you dare give in, Roy William Harper!"

"Ha…ha," Red Arrow laughed weakly. "You're making such a big deal out of nothing, Arty. I assure you I'm not dying."

"Then swear to me," Artemis demanded. "Swear to me that you won't die."

He coughed, "I swear. Damn, Artemis, you're stubborn 'til the end."

Artemis smiled a little. Just for him. "That's why we got along sooo **splendidly.**"

"You know, Artemis," Red Arrow smiled back, "If it's one thing I regret, it's that I didn't have you back when I was being-"

"A stupid, arrogant ass?" Artemis supplied, her smile growing a little wider as memories of them flooded through her mind.

"Yeah," Red Arrow laughed, "That."

His face took a more serious look, "Look, Artemis, when you find Roy, he'll be in his angsty rebellious stage. In other words, probably a bigger asshole than I am. Don't hesitate to give him hell for it. I know that I would still be an asshole if it wasn't for you."

"You still are one," Artemis joked. Tears were even more freely falling out of her eyes.

"Stop crying," Red Arrow demanded. "And take off your mask so I can see your face."

"Then let me take off yours," Artemis countered.

"Fair enough," Red Arrow conceded.

Artemis leaned forward to peel back Red Arrow's domino mask, and he reached up to pull down her own mask.

"There," he smiled. Artemis took in his mask-less face for what she hoped would not be the last time.

Artemis began to lean back, when all of a sudden, Roy's hand came to the back of her neck and pushed her head towards his.

The lip contact did not last over a minute, but to Artemis, it felt like an eternity. The way that Roy was kissing her almost made her forget he was dying, because hell, he was such a good kisser. The passion and desire on his part was a large amount for anybody to have, let alone a dying person.

When they separated, Artemis's face flushed as her chest heaved and her brain screamed for oxygen.

Seeing Artemis's expression, Roy smirked. "Just wanted to do that. I have been, for a while."

Shakily, Artemis's fingers rose to touch her tingling lips.

"Happy New Year, Artemis," Roy looked beyond her, seemingly noticing the others for the first time. "And you guys too. You've all put up with me and let me into your family. I owe you guys."

Artemis looked up, catching M'gann's eyes. The Martian gazed sadly at the archer in response, tears brimming over. She had never watched anyone die before, nevertheless seen a **comrade **die before.

"Artemis," Roy's voice was softer than ever.

"Yes?" Artemis whispered back, turning to look at him once more.

"I know I don't deserve to…" Roy's eyes shut once more, and his hands began to loosen out of Artemis's grip. "…..but I still ….feel **that** way for you."

Artemis's eyes widened as his hand completely slipped out of her own.

"You can't!" Artemis finally found her voice. She screamed at him. "You swore to me! You swore!"

"Artemis," a hand reached for her shoulder. "ARTEMIS!"

It was Kid Flash.

"He's gone," Kid Flash said forcefully. His green eyes were dull and he physically winced when he heard his words out loud. "Roy's gone."

"No," Artemis began to rock herself back and forth. "no, no, no, no, no."

"I don't hear his heartbeat," Superboy added, looking struck. The two didn't initially get along, but Artemis had the feeling that Red Arrow and Superboy may have grown to be good friends. They certainly had a common point in their temper.

"He's not dead," Artemis protested, tears coming out of her eyes. "He can't be dead!"

"Artemis," Miss Martian's arm wrapped around her from behind. "I'm so sorry."

"And contrary to what you're thinking," Zatanna joined the embrace. "It's not your fault."

All in the room bowed their head in silence, a few of them sniffling and wiping their tears away with the back of their hand furiously. (For Kid Flash's sake, they shall not be named)

They had won the battle against the Light…but at the unnecessary price of a friend, comrade, and fellow hero.

* * *

><p><em>The Watchtower<em>

_January 1, 00:02 EDT _

"Happy New Years," Kid Flash quietly came up to a brooding Artemis.

When the League members had come to their senses, the Team had rather hesitantly informed them of the cost of the battle. Red Arrow's body was then removed, and the blood stains scrubbed away, though not even Batman and Red Tornado could bear to do it. Green Arrow had angrily punched a nearby wall several times before stalking out of the Watchtower. Black Canary, with tears of her own, followed. They, unlike Artemis, could not stand to see Roy's body, and fled before any could really try to comfort the two in their loss of a person who had been like a son to them. They only returned after a few minutes, composing themselves to say goodbye to him.

Only Artemis stayed the whole time by Red Arrow's side. The Team had to physically hold her back as mournful League members took his body away. Artemis continued to argue that Red Arrow couldn't have possibly died. Nobody had the heart to argue with her; after all, denial was one of the seven stages of grief.

"It's….It's not your fault, you know," He said, when no response came from the blonde archer.

"Yes," Artemis closed her eyes and bowed her head. "it is."

"Artemis," Kid Flash reached out to touch her shoulder. "You need to accept Roy's death, and the fact that it's not your fault…."

He punched the wall next to them, in a sudden fit of rage. "…It's that **stupid** shadow operative's… When I see her…"

Artemis's eyes widened briefly before darkening. "Who told you?"

Kid Flash gave her a look of disbelief. "Robin told me."

"Right," Artemis shifted her gaze away. She had forgotten that they had not been alone.

"Anyway," Artemis looked back at Kid Flash, "Thanks for trying to make me feel better."

She turned to leave the Watchtower; it had been a long and terrible day.

"Oh." Artemis stopped and spun back around. She gave Kid Flash a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Happy New Years, Wally," she said softly.

Then she left before she could cry again. Because when she had kissed the ginger, she had briefly imagined it to be a certain red-haired archer.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, I have gone where no other RoyArt fan has ever gone: I have killed Roy. The last part was VERY, VERY hard to write. Like I said earlier, I've been busy lately, and it didn't help that I was very reluctant to well, murder Roy. The dream that Artemis had back in Chapter 7 foreshadowed this event. <strong>

**I always wondered how the others would react if they lost a comrade during a battle with the Light. I mean, after all, they lost teammates in much lesser battles. Why couldn't they lose one in the biggest battle of season one? In addition, my cousin, when finding out Roy was a clone, declared that there were too many Roy Harpers running around, and that the show should just kill one of them off (I disagreed with her, but I used her comment to do this chapter).**

**The part where I mentioned Inferno will be furthered explained in the next few chapters through the flashbacks. If you aren't so enraged by this chapter, stick around to read it. It will be mostly about how Artemis and Roy came to know (and eventually began to like-like) each other. Also, just to clarify, out of pride, Artemis DID NOT reveal her secret. Only Red Arrow and Robin knew. Artemis choked, and the secret stays buried. Again, more will be explained through the next two chapters.**

_Please stick around because you may end up liking the sequel._

**Artemis denies Roy's death, while the others believe him dead. Do you believe Artemis or think she's gone crazy? And originally, I was going to have the other members of the Team cut in during the RoyArt moment, as well as cropped out the kiss, but then decided that some of the very faithful RoyArt fans may have found some way to hunt me down in the night and kill me if I didn't include. And because, I'd probably hate my own self for not doing it.**

**I also feel like I lost my affinity for writing the other characters so I cropped them out or left them reduced to very small lines and roles.**

**WallArt fans, for your sake, I put a small WallArt moment in the end, but only if you squint and determine it as that way.**

**Anyway, if you're still reading this, thank you very much!**

**One last thing, who do you blame for Roy's death? Artemis, Roy, or Mirage?**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**


	13. A New Year's Resolution

**Once again, I did not stick to my schedule for the story... I'm very sorry for that. But the sequel's in progress at the moment, so you won't have to wait for more than a week for it to come out. I STILL NEED STORY TITLE SUGGESTIONS THOUGH!**

**Special thanks to **batman-defeats-all, artemisred arrow 4ever, colerfulldarkness666, Angel of Mysteries, rmsjms98, sabbs12**3, and **meadow-music **for sending a review to the last chapter. I'd also like to thank **BlueBird722 **for that suggestion.**

**I THINK that this will probably be the last chapter of _Buried Secrets_. I know I said that I'd do the flashbacks, and I will, but I'm doing it under a separate story. **

**I encourage you guys to check out** _Jealousy,** or, as I'm later going to rename it**_ Remember**. In it, I will put the flashbacks each as its own chapter, but I first want to hit eight reviews for it before I do it. The people who send in the required reviews to the story get to choose a theme or story line that I'll try to adhere to for the memory.**

_Italics _**= thoughts, "telepathic communication"/ "radio communication"/ "on television", time stamps, flashbacks**

**Bold= exaggerated words**

**Warning: Characters are most likely OOC, and profanity is used at certain points in the story. **

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Young Justice. **

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_January 1, 10:36 EDT _

The first thing that she felt was numbness. Squinting against the rays of sunlight infiltrating the blinds of her bedroom window, Artemis slowly rises from her bed and stretches.

A quick glance to the now empty and tidily made bed to the left of her told Artemis that Alice had been up for quite a while.

She felt a slight pang of guilt towards her earlier treatment of Alice. After yesterday, Artemis had promptly ignored her younger sister. Somehow, a part of Artemis connected the sweet eleven year old to Roy's death. It wasn't fair, she knew, but it hurt too much to look at and talk to Alice. Especially because looking at her would remind her of Mirage and how the shape shifter had assumed the form of both of her sisters.

On the bright side, Alice was distracted enough with Artemis's cousin, Si Nguyen, to not notice Artemis's cold shoulder treatment.

The low sound of piano music could be heard from outside her bedroom door. The person was obviously trying to play quietly.

Wait, piano music? Since when did their apartment even _have_ a piano?!

Out of curiosity, Artemis swings her feet over the bed, and her feet lightly bound across the wooden floor to the living room.

Alice is tinkering around on an old brown piano, while Paula and Si listen. Si sits next to her on the piano bench, watching her fingers fly across the keys, and Paula's wheelchair is stationed right next to the piano. Paula herself sips on a mug of tea and stares off into the distance with a pensive look on her face.

Artemis closes her eyes to appreciate the melody, the music speaking to her for some reason. It gave her this slightly melancholy and contemplative feeling, like it was a sad reflection on happy times.

"Since when did we get a piano?" Artemis asks, deciding to make herself known after Alice finishes playing. She also wants to ask when Alice started playing piano, but obviously it was prior to her becoming a Crock.

Si smiles, gently nudging Alice. "The land lord found it in one of his storage rooms. He thought of Alcee and decided to give it to the family for New Year's."

Paula lowers her morning earl grey tea to her lap to add, "The land lord has spoken to your sister a couple of times, and she apparently reminds him of his grand-daughter."

"I used to play piano," Alice says quietly off-topic, "you know, before…"

_Before her dad began to start physically abusing his only daughter._

Artemis's first instinct is to wrap her arms around Alice comfortingly like she had used to, but an image of Mirage's cold eyes and hard smirk stopped her. It wasn't fair to Alice, but Artemis still couldn't bring herself to go close to her.

Paula reaches a hand out to squeeze the eleven year old's own petite ones. Alice's lips turn upwards into a small smile, but it rapidly begins to fade.

Alice's light brown eyes glance over at Artemis, but when Artemis stares back at her, her eyes quickly dart away.

"Let's go outside and play, Alcee." Si says suddenly, getting up and extending a hand towards her.

Artemis immediately recognizes this as an attempt to cheer Alice up, and she is sure the perceptive girl picked up on it too.

"Thanks, Si," Alice smiles softly and the two go to grab their shoes by the door.

Before Alice can unlock the door though, Si's voice stops her. "Alcee, since it's my last day here, can we try doing something new? I'm not so sure I want to play capture-the-flag with the other kids today."

"Okay," Alice gives a thoughtful nod after a few moments. "I can introduce you to Jason, then. He can be a little rough around the edges and temperamental at first, but he's been really nice to me otherwise."

She opens the door and leans back against it, waiting for Si to go first.

Si nods his head, eager to meet a decent kid who had _some_ manners and decency towards his new cousin at the very least.

"But you might want to watch your pockets around him," Alice adds, finally walking into the hallway when it becomes clear that Si wants her to go first. He's always been such a gentleman.

"I suppose he can sometimes be a '_kleptomaniac_' so to speak."

"Wait," Si's voice is barely audible as the door begins to close behind them. "What?"

Now that the apartment is empty, Paula wheels herself over to her daughter.

"How are you coping?" she asks her softly. Batman must've informed her. At least it saved Artemis the trouble of explaining why she had been so moody yesterday.

Artemis's lips tremble. "Not good," she gasps out as she sinks onto her knees in front of her mother.

Paula's fingers weave through Artemis's blonde hair comfortingly as the fifteen-year old's body begins to rack with sobs.

* * *

><p>It saddens Paula Brooks to see her second daughter so depressed and brokenhearted. The red-headed teen had obviously meant a lot more to Artemis than she let on.<p>

Artemis had been so happy the week before. She practically floated on cloud nine, though she tried to hide it from her mother. She protested when Paula had demanded that she invite the boy. Put up a façade about not wanting him to be around her. That she couldn't possibly care less about him.

"_Artemis, answer the door for me please," Paula commanded her daughter._

_The blonde, ever tending to her archery equipment in the living room, groaned good-naturedly and got up to go to the door._

_Alice had been occupying herself with setting the table. Artemis had not noticed, but the girl had prepared the dinner table for four._

_Paula smirked to herself as she busied herself over the stove. Her daughter would get quite the surprise when she opened the door. _

_A thought came across the Vietnamese woman's mind. The last time she had cooked a Christmas family meal, she had had the use of her legs…_

_She shook her head of that thought. How disheartening! She should not constantly live bemoaning her current living condition and the choices she had made in her life due to the lack of opportunities. She had given birth to two wonderful girls, who, despite struggling as she had herself, would no doubt make her extremely proud if they hadn't already. Not to mention, she had a do-over for any of the mistakes she had made in Jade in the form of sweet little Alice. _

_Paula arranged the spring rolls onto the big serving platter. What was taking Artemis so long to open the door? She should have seen the boy ("Roy" was it?) by now._

"_Artemis is probably having problems with the locks," Alice says to Paula, as if she could practically tell what she was thinking. Or perhaps it was because the twelve year old wondered why Artemis was taking so long herself._

_Sure enough, loud metal clicking and slightly aggravated mumbling could be heard. Artemis was most likely cussing the locks out under her breath. The numerous locks on the apartment door and Artemis never got along; she always opted to get in and out of the apartment via the fire escape._

_There was small cheer of victory as Artemis presumably unlocked the final door mechanism._

_3…_

_2…_

"_WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Artemis barely restrained her loud voice. Well, at least she hadn't shouted any profanities in earshot of the children or neighbors._

"_I was __**invited**__," a low, masculine voice deadpans._

"_I don't recall handing you an __**invitation**__ with my forgiveness," Artemis retorts._

"_Could I __**please **__come in?" the young man sounds slightly annoyed. "My arms are getting kinda tired."_

_The boy must have brought something. Well, at least it showed he had manners. Most would come over empty-handed, believing their presence was all that was necessary when invited._

"…_fine…"Artemis gives in, letting their guest inside and closing the door behind him._

"_Thank you, Ms. Crock, for inviting me," the young man nods his head respectfully at her when the duo enter the kitchen. _

_Paula stiffens at the use of her ex-husband (well, not quite yet in legal terms)'s last name, but relaxes before her guest could notice. It's not his fault that he doesn't know._

"_Merry Christmas," Alice smiles at the redhead. She blinks before realizing that he does not know her. "I'm Alice."_

_The redhead looks at the twelve-year old for a moment before smiling. "Roy. Roy Harper."_

_Artemis takes the gifts and champagne bottle from him as Alice slinks away. The blonde casts him a weird look, though Paula can easily identify some affection in her charcoal grey eyes._

"_You're not wearing those ridiculous shades," Artemis realizes after a few moments of examining him. _

_And indeed, the young man's blue eyes are now able to be seen by everyone._

"_Why not?" Roy shrugs. "You've already seen me without them."_

_He hesitates, "and besides…. I trust you."_

_Artemis snorts, "You're getting sappy on me, Speedy."_

_But the blonde smiles nonetheless._

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_January 1, 15:47 EDT_

"Where's Red?"

That had been the first thing that Inferno had said to her when he spotted her walking up to him.

Artemis hesitates, unsure about how to say it and unwilling to actually think about it.

"Gone." Artemis chokes out, the word barely coming out of her mouth as a hoarse whisper.

Inferno's eyes widen for a moment and then soften. "I see."

Artemis sits next to him, dangling her legs over the side of the rooftop. Stars twinkled in the sky, and if it wasn't for what had happened yesterday, Artemis would've been happy.

"How've you been holding up?" Inferno says, uncharacteristically quiet.

"Not good," Artemis murmurs, her eyes downcast. "I miss him."

"Of course you do," Inferno nudges her gently. "And I bet that in heaven, he misses you just as much."

Artemis laughs with no humor. "You don't understand. It's my fault."

"Then make me." Inferno looks straight into her eyes with a startling intensity.

When Artemis says nothing, Inferno angrily yanks his mask off. She gasps in response. Who in their right mind would just randomly reveal their secret identity? What was the point of his mask if he was just going to rip it off randomly?!

"Look, 'Mis," Inferno grabs her shoulders. "**Look at me**."

Artemis forces herself to look into his gold colored eyes (an odd color, but she could think of some stranger colors).

"If it is really your fault, then you certainly owe him. And I **know **Red wouldn't want you to wallow in guilt and misery for the rest of your life."

"Maybe not," Artemis's voice rises shakily. "But I deserve to."

"No," Inferno shakes his head. "You don't."

"Red loves you," Inferno continues when Artemis didn't reply. "I could see it as clear as day. I know you know that too."

Of course she knew. She still clung onto the memories of his last few hours. She'd daze off in the middle of thought and replay that painful scene over and over again.

Inferno laughs, "Why do you think he hated me so much at first?"

There were plenty of answers that Artemis could've given him then.

_Because he didn't trust you; he trusts hardly any one. _

_Because you just happened to conveniently be around when we were hunting for Mirage. _

_Because you're clearly from the bad parts of Gotham….like me. _

_Because he secretly envied your powers._

When Artemis doesn't offer any of the thoughts, Inferno puts his domino mask back on, a deep chuckle emitting from his throat.

"….It's because he was jealous of me hanging out with you during your patrols with him…I bet even a fifty yard distance wouldn't have been enough for him."

"That's not true," Artemis says quietly. But the more she thinks about it, it explains his sudden blow-ups during patrols. At her. And **especially** at Inferno.

* * *

><p>"<em>Siblings?" Artemis asks, leaning forward in curiosity to catch his answer.<em>

"_Nope," Inferno laughs humorously. "I have a monkey named Toby, though."_

_She elbows him, "I'm sure you're brother's not __**that **__bad."_

"_Well," Inferno pretends to be thinking seriously. "I suppose not. If you don't mind Curious George x10 in a little boy."_

_Artemis laughs with him, but out of the corner of her eye, she can see __**Speedy**__ scowling. _

"_If you're done…." __**Speedy**__ growls as he pulls his binoculars away from his face._

"_Nope," Inferno smirks as he pops the 'p'. "I could go on for hours talking to 'Mis."_

"_So now you are giving each other nicknames?" __**Speedy**__ gives them a disdainful look._

_Artemis is about to tell __**Speed**__y off, but Inferno sends her a look._

'_Just go along with it' he mouths._

_Artemis smiles and rolls her eyes, but complies anyway. "Um…..not yet."_

_She turns to Inferno, "How about I call you….."_

_Artemis pauses. To Red Arrow, it might have seemed like it was for dramatic effect, but in reality, Artemis was just trying her best to conjure up something good on the fly. And I think we all know how bad of a liar Artemis really was._

"…_.The burning fire and passion of your heart and soul?" Inferno cuts in cheekily, sending a wide grin to __**Speedy**__._

_Artemis laughs at Inferno's outrageous response. _

_**Speedy**__ growls in response, but sharply turns away. "You guys are just a joke."_

"_Huh," Inferno's grin turns into a smirk. "Then I guess 'Mis and I have a special little joke just between us. No Reds allowed."_

_Artemis hadn't completely followed what Inferno was trying to do at the time. As a matter of fact, his purpose is still a little fuzzy today._

"_What is your __**problem**__?!" __**Speedy**__ demands angrily._

"_I don't know," Inferno says albeit too innocently. "But it appears I have a tendency to be a troller." _

_**Speedy**__ mutters something that suspiciously sounds like 'Damn right.'_

_All is silent for a few moments before Inferno speaks up once more._

"_Hey, 'Mis" He calls for her attention._

"_Hm?" She gives it to him somewhat reluctantly. _

_She didn't understand why Inferno and Red Arrow couldn't get along. They both had tempers, but Inferno could be rather cool and funny._

_With a snap of his fingers, Inferno has lit up a bright fire in his hands. The night is cold, so the slightly shivering Artemis pulls closer to him to get some of the warmth._

_She doesn't notice Speedy's eyes narrowing behind the domino mask or how his fists clench and his mouth sets into a snarl._

_While Artemis is too busy warming herself over the fire, Inferno casts Speedy a glance over his shoulder._

'_Problem?' he mouths, his face the definition of a troll face._

* * *

><p>"Man," Inferno cracks up. "I know I probably shouldn't have messed with him like that, but damn, it was too much fun."<p>

"You're such a troll," Artemis shoves him lightly, slight comprehension coming over her as she realizes why he had been messing around with Roy.

"Problem?" Inferno gives probably what is one of the best troll faces Artemis has ever seen. Well, besides the Boy Wonder.

"Stop it!" Artemis laughs loudly, clutching her sides. Was it wrong to be smiling so soon? "You look totally ridiculous!"

Eventually, the laughter in her subsides and the aching pain of longing returns.

"I miss him," Artemis says plaintively.

"I do too," Inferno's eyes take on a mournful look. "That hot head was really growing on me."

"You'd never know it," Artemis scrunched her knees up to tuck under her chin. "But you were growing on him too."

"Yeah," Inferno weakly chuckles. "Once he realized I was only pushing his buttons to make him jealous."

"I mean," Inferno shifts so that he directly faces Artemis, "he was like the _epitome_ of jealousy when he thought I was _flirting_ with you."

"I guess," Artemis mumbles.

Because that's all she was really doing at this point. Guessing. She'd never be able to ask Roy himself if he had truly been jealous or anything like that back before they had gotten to know each other on a more personal level.

"How did he-" Inferno starts to ask after a long silence between them. Then he stops, clearly uncomfortable asking the question.

And even though it's really the last story she wants to repeat, Artemis tells Inferno the previous day in excruciating details.

"Mirage did it?" Inferno says weakly. He looks greatly pained.

"I-….yes…" Artemis answers, partially glad that he doesn't blame her. If it's one thing that Inferno is, it's honest.

"That…can't be…" Inferno shakes his head, disbelief on his features. "She'd _never_ kill."

His real response causes a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"Well," Artemis says dryly. "She did."

The blonde _wished_ that Mirage would never kill. In that case, Roy would still be beside her.

Inferno shakes his head once more. "It's not even possible 'Mis!"

"How is it not possible?!" Artemis snaps. "She injured you and did work for the League of Shadows!"

"That last time was an accident." Inferno defends. "I saw her try to stop the billboard."

The last patrol, Red Arrow, Artemis, and Inferno had managed to find Mirage at the old building where they had first met Inferno. There had been a fight, followed by a chase, and somehow Artemis and Red Arrow had fallen behind.

When they finally caught up to Inferno and Mirage, they found Inferno practically buried underneath a huge billboard promoting _Lexcorp Industries_. Mirage had been near the billboard (perhaps she could have felt bad and tried to help him out), but quickly disappeared into the night when it became clear that Red Arrow and Artemis were present.

Inferno was put into a full body cast (being a meta didn't mean being invincible like the Man of Steel) and was generally lucky to be alive and able to be back on the streets a month later, though Artemis secretly suspects that Inferno isn't really supposed to be suited up for crime fighting yet.

"Besides," he says, looking puzzled, "it's not possible because she was here last night with **me**."

* * *

><p><em>Washington D.C.<em>

_January 2, 16:25 EDT_

"I don't like this," Inferno scowls, his eyes hidden behind his shades. The hood of his red hoodie is pulled over his head, casting a dark shadow over the majority of his face.

"Pull down your hood," is all Artemis says, comfortable in her own costume. Inferno insisted on wearing his civvies for some reason. "It's making you look like a hoodlum."

"I _am_ one," Inferno grumbles but reluctantly peels the hood back, revealing his black hair and moody face.

Artemis ignores his comment, still slightly put off with him for earlier. She heads up the front desk, pausing there to wait for the security guard to notice her.

"Yes?" the man asks in a voice that's familiar and causes Artemis to mentally cringe. "Can I help you?"

"My friend and I just wanted a look around the lab," Artemis tries to smile convincingly as she bluffs. "We have permission from the Justice League."

Artemis can hear Inferno attempt to cover a snort, but she manages to ignore him anyway.

The man merely stares at her, his icy blue piercing into her soul. Eventually he sighs and pulls off his golden helmet.

"Artemis, is it?" he asks once it's off.

Artemis resists the urge to gasp. The man looks basically like an older version of Roy. Inferno's eyes widen as well, clearly seeing the resemblance.

Then, remembering his question, Artemis numbly nods her head.

Seeing the strange looks being given to him, the man smiles. "I assume that you've met my nephew Roy then."

_Nephew?!_

"Y-you're Roy's uncle?!" Artemis stutters.

Roy's uncle nods his head. "Yes. By the way, how is he?"

Fantastic. Just freaking great. Now Artemis had to explain to Roy's uncle that the Roy he knew was really a clone, and, not to mention, was dead because of her. **Just perfect**.

An African-American female scientist saves Artemis from giving the bad news. Artemis briefly recognizes her as one of the scientists who assisted them in creating the cure-tech.

"Guardian," the woman impatiently pushes her glasses further up her nose. "Why are there visitors here? Remember the last time some of the children showed up?"

"Dr. Spe-" Guardian starts to explain.

"Spence." Inferno suddenly growls at the young woman. His mouth is set into a snarl, and if it wasn't for the shades, Artemis was sure she'd see an angry fire blazing in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," the woman blinks at Inferno. "but do I know you?"

"Like _hell_ you do," Inferno scowls, "but you've must have really moved up in the world. You're not the head research aide of a small and _illegal _genetics project anymore, now are you?"

"Excuse me," Dr. Spence begins in slight outrage. "But just who do you think you are?!"

"I'm sure you know who I am…" Inferno hisses, "or rather, _what _I am…"

He's about to say more, but Artemis grabs his shoulder and gives him a meaningful look. What was he doing?!

Dr. Spence scrutinizes him a few moments before dropping the clipboard she is holding in shock. She blinks rapidly as she stares at Inferno. "P-project-?"

"Project Inferno," Inferno gives her a mock bow after ripping away from Artemis's hold. "It is such a _pleasure_ to see you again, 'Doc."

"Y-you're alive." Dr. Spence's face is that of horror as she states the obvious.

"Yes," Inferno gives her a mocking smile. "But in no thanks to the over 100 mA shocks administered to me on a daily basis, I'm afraid."

"T-the explosion-!" Dr. Spence stammers. "the HGRA's lab was destroyed."

"Yet here both you and I stand," Inferno says wryly. "the abilities you gave me did certainly come in handy."

Dr. Spence's face begins to contort into something before her knees give out.

"Dr. Spence!" Guardian's eyes widen in alarm as he rounds around his desk to help the scientist up.

"Let's go," Inferno tugs at Artemis hand and pulls her away from the two adults…..**away** from the exit.

He leads her down and around several hallways before he finally stops in a darker and more secluded area. Artemis manages to display a surprising amount of patience by not exploding or firing questions at him while they're walking.

"What was _that_?!" Artemis demands, her voice in a harsh whisper.

"I didn't count on Amanda Spence being here," Inferno scowls, "but I guess I caused enough of a scene for us to slip away."

Inferno pinches the bridge of his nose, "Would you care to tell me _now_ why we're even here in Cadmus? This place is suspicious and just reeks of sketchiness since Spence is here."

"We're looking for a…..friend of mine," Artemis lamely answers, rubbing her arm.

Her idea of who she thought Inferno was exactly was beginning to slip away entirely. She had no idea if she could really trust him when it came down to it.

She also had no idea whether Batman had been telling the truth when he had been under the influence of the Light. Probably not. Therefore, there was still a probability that Roy- the original one- was still somewhere in Cadmus. But who knows if Inferno was willing to take a possibility?

"That's the answer you're going to give me!?" Inferno gaps at her incredulously. "Gee 'Mis, you can just _feel_ the trust you have for me!"

"It's for Roy, okay?!" Artemis snaps. "And why should I trust you now?! You've been fraternizing with _her_!"

Artemis nearly spat the pronoun out. She didn't have a problem with the pronoun (duh), but with who she was referring to... Roy's murderer.

"You don't know her," Inferno defends. "She's a good person at heart. She has an unorthodox way of showing it, that's all."

"Are you seriously defending her after what she did?!" Artemis practically screams.

Keeping her cool (or as the Boy Wonder would put it, staying traught) was never really Artemis's thing. Especially not now.

"I told you, you don't know for sure it's her!" Inferno argues. "I was talking to her on New Year's Eve."

Apparently Inferno had been running into Mirage far more than Artemis and Red Arrow had during patrols. A part of Artemis wondered whether Mirage had manipulated it so that she'd narrow out the archers and only get Inferno. He did seem to be her plaything of sorts.

Anyway, Inferno, seeing some potential good in her, and attempted to often persuade her to the good side before engaging in combat. He had seemingly run into her on the night of New Year's Eve, and the two had counted down together on the rooftop. With a slight flush, Inferno had cited 'evidence' that he hadn't imagined their encounter with the kiss on the cheek she had given him for New Year's. It wasn't real evidence, and Artemis could only take his word for it.

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_January 1, 17: 56 EDT_

As Artemis frustratedly stalks back towards the apartment complex, she hears what seems to be shouting coming from near the building.

"Let her go!" an angry voice yells. The loud sound of flesh meeting pavement fills the air.

"Shut it, Todd," another voice responds. The guy sounds equally as frustrated as the first. "You're lucky I don't rat you out to the truant officer."

"Please, let's not resort to violence," a recognizable voice pleads. "Just let go of her."

Artemis picks up speed at the familiar voice. What was Si doing around kids like those?

"Don't tell me what to do, you prissy freak!" the second voice shouts.

"Vince, don't you dare lay a hand on either of them!" another aggravated voice demands. But this one is female and is eerily familiar yet….different.

Artemis quickly rounds the corner. What she sees is a slight shock to her system.

Si is surrounded by two boys, both clearly older and tougher than him, with rugged faces and cruel mischief in their eyes. Another struggling black haired boy is being held back by three others. Notably, the one that seemed to be holding on the tightest had a slight bruise forming on his jaw.

Artemis could only presume that the struggling black-haired boy had been the first voice and therefore, 'Todd'.

Finally, there is a slightly older guy with dirty blond hair, glinting green eyes, and a cheshire-like grin who is tightly holding onto…._Alice_

"You've been a very naughty girl, Alice," 'Vince' purrs. "Maybe I should punish you."

His hand creeps upwards, resting on her upper stomach briefly before starting to go further up.

Artemis clenches her teeth in anger and stalks forward.

"Like hell you will," the black-haired boy's arm slips out from one of the boys and punches the other guy holding his second arm. He advances forward. The guy with the slight bruise on his jaw jumps forward to tackle 'Todd' to the ground.

Vince's hand has stopped traveling upwards. "You're nothing but a street thief, Todd," he laughs. "When you're not relying on _Mummy_ , that is."

Artemis steps in, ready to give a good pounding to the boys…..

….but not before Alice promptly steps down _hard_ onto Vince's foot.

A somewhat sickening crack fills the air, and Artemis pauses, her eyes widening in shock.

Not even a second after stepping on his foot does Alice proceed to elbow Vince roughly in the rib cage.

The blond boy gasps as he flinches back and hops on one foot, grabbing his foot in pain. Alice takes the opportunity to slip out of his hold and run to the fallen boy.

"Let _go_ of him." Alice commands to the guy on top of 'Todd'. "_Now_."

Numbly, the guy nods his head as he gets off of the boy. He rushes to help his fallen leader, Vince. The other two lackeys back away.

While Alice handles the guy, Artemis taps roughly on the shoulders of the two boys holding Si. They turn around crossly, slightly irritated at being pulled away from watching the transpiring events.

Artemis punches the living daylights out of them before they can even blink. Si smiles gratefully at Artemis and, oddly, says nothing of her rather violent method of handling the situation.

Alice helps 'Todd' up and shoots a glare at Vince that Artemis didn't even know Alice was capable of.

"Si too." Alice gestures to her foster-cousin, not quite realizing that Artemis had arrived and interfered.

Vince whistles, clearly impressed with this other side of Alice. Artemis barely knows the boy but he sickens her extremely.

"I've got to hand it to you, Ally-girl," Vince casually sticks his hands into the pockets of his ripped jeans. "You sure know how to keep a guy interested."

"Buzz off," Alice scowls, "I'm not nor ever will be interested in guys like _you_."

"You're almost eighteen," Todd looks at Vince disgustedly. There is a slight scrape on his chin from his rough collision with the pavement. "and you're trying to put the moves on an eleven year old. That's sickening."

That Vince guy was actually older than _Artemis_?! She had thought that he was just her age.

"Not to mention," Artemis steps forward, her arms folded, "it's _pedophilia_."

"Artemis!" Alice gasps when she sees her older foster sister. Her face flushes heavily.

"Keep out, blondie," Vince spits at her. "This is between me and Ally-girl. It's a lover's spat, ya see? She came to me _first_. She's always coming on to _me_."

Alice doesn't say anything; instead she grips onto Todd's arm tightly, squinching her eyes shut.

"Actually," Si speaks up, "as I recall, you and your 'friends' approached us and you suddenly grabbed Alice."

"I'm a gentleman!" Vince shouts angrily, his face turning a bright red. "I'm just giving the girl what she wants!"

"Then leave her alone and never come within at least a five mile radius of her ever again." Todd growls, protectively putting an arm around Alice's shoulder.

"Or I'll _pummel _you like I did to these guys," Artemis steps aside, revealing the two lackeys who had previously been holding Si.

Vince's eyes widen, but he still takes a step forward to Alice.

"Tell 'em, Alice," Vince demands. "Tell 'em about us, and how you're just toying with me like you always do."

"There's nothing to tell," Alice opens her eyes and looks at him coldly. "unless you really want me to send you to juvenile court for assault while you still try as a minor."

Vince's green eyes glint in disbelief, "You're joking, right?"

"Scratch that," Alice's hands wrap against her body tightly as she steps towards him, "maybe a psychiatrist for your hebephilia and false impression of us ever having a relationship."

"I DON'T HAVE HIBI-WHATEVER!" Vince explodes.

Artemis, Todd, and Si all move to pull Alice away from the seventeen year old.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," Todd scoffs, his hand reaches for Alice's shoulder. "C'mon, Alice, we can play with your cousin somewhere else."

Alice ignores Todd, stepping forward until she is in arm's distance of him. Vince stares at her while her brown eyes flicker over his face. The corners of Vince's mouth tug into a smirk.

"Alice!" Artemis cries in alarm.

Then Alice's leg swings back and kicks him in between the legs. While he grunts in pain and goes to cover the area she just kicked, Alice shoves him roughly by the shoulders to the ground.

"That's for touching them," Alice stands defiantly above him, "when I _warned_ you not to."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_January 1, 18:32 EDT_

"Bye, Jase!" Alice waves to her friend, who apparently was _not_ named Todd.

"Farewell, Jason," Si calls out. "It was nice meeting you."

His arm extends in a casual goodbye as he walks away.

Artemis makes note of clothes so she could remember him next time he came around. She didn't give him proper thanks for defending her sister. He wore faded blue jeans, a white tee-shirt that looked to be slightly stained with grease and a wrench in his back pocket.

As the three walked back inside to the apartment, Artemis asks, "Are you guys alright?"

"Yeah," Alice responds quietly, tightly holding her body. At the same time, Si answers, "Yes, thank you."

As they reach the door, Si opens it and motions for the girls to go on in first.

"Actually, Si," Alice says almost inaudibly, "would you mind going in first? I need to talk to Artemis."

Si nods silently and walks in, only leaving the door slightly ajar.

"I'm sorry that I had to get you involved, Artemis," Alice apologizes, looking down at the dirty wooden floor. "I know that you needed your distance."

"Alice," Artemis's hands reach out for her, "you needed me, and I am more than happy to help keep you safe."

Alice's lips wobble and tears start springing into her eyes, "H-he touched me, Artemis. I just….feel so dirty."

Artemis wraps her arms around the younger girl, embracing her into a hug. What was she supposed to say? That it's going to be okay? She was pretty sure Alice would never forget the whole experience.

"He's the dirty one," Artemis strokes her hair, a similar action to what her own mother did to Artemis whenever she's upset. "I'm impressed that you were able to defend yourself against a guy bigger than you."

"I only did that with Jason and Si's help. And then you also had to interfere for me too," Alice sobs, "All I wanted to do was prove that I could be strong and brave like you."

Artemis was touched. "You are, Ally," Artemis pulls Alice away to arm's length to look her in the eyes. "You are a _brave_ little fighter."

Alice smiles slightly, "I'm so glad that I have you as an older sister. You always protect me and know what to do."

* * *

><p><em>Gotham City<em>

_January 2, 0:21 EDT_

In the dark of the night, Artemis traces her fingers over a small business card. _Lexcorp Industries_.

Somehow, someway, she was going to infiltrate _Lexcorp_ and get the information she needed to find Speedy.

When she and Inferno finally found what looked to be the storage room for the original DNA of cloning projects, they did not find a single human or humanoid. Artemis did, however, find the business card on the ground.

What were the chances of that? Artemis voiced the possibility to Inferno, who did agree that Lexcorp was certainly a shady enough company to be involved. It did fund Cadmus, after all.

Artemis tightens her grip on the business card.

_I'll find you, Speedy. No matter what it takes._

* * *

><p><strong>I don't know if you guys noticed, but I tried present tense for this chapter. If you guys are still reading this, let me know whether you think the change in tense is better or not. I'm also aware that no one else from the Team was in this chapter, as well as that there was hardly any action in this chapter.<strong>

** I also think that I may have put too much of Alice in there, but I just wanted to use her to sneak in the arrival of a certain character in the YJ. This chapter was also my way of showing you that Alice is a much more complex character than she seems to be. Because I'm not doing the five year jump, you'll be seeing the certain character in the sequel...eventually. Gold star sticker for whoever knows who he is! (honestly, it's not that hard though for any fans of DC comics).**

**Roy's death was the climax of this story, and I just kinda crammed the falling action and resolution (sorta) together in this chapter. It's still within 24 hrs of his death, so Artemis is still grieving over him. She hasn't gone to the Cave, so she's obviously not going to see them. There'll be a lot more of the Team in the sequel, as well as more bonding moments. **

**I kinda strayed from what I had originally planned at the beginning, and now **_Buried Secrets_** kinda seems like an ill-fitting title.**

**Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!**_  
><em>


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